The markets have been subject to wild fluctuations amid US President Donald Trump’s statements on the war in Iran.
Trump had threatened to bomb Iranian energy infrastructure - and Iran vowed it would retaliate by hitting water and energy facilities in the Gulf - unless it reopened the Strait of Hormuz, the vital global oil artery in which the Tehran regime has a stranglehold.
Following Trump’s comments, in which he gave Iran a 48-hour deadline, financial markets were in a tailspin and oil prices were rising again.
But a statement from Trump on Monday saying he would pause strikes amid “very good and productive conversations” with Tehran sparked a volatile swing back the other way.
Earlier, London’s FTSE 100 Index was at one stage 250 points lower, before reversing to stand just 8.6 points down.
The pan-European STOXX 600 rose over 1%, having fallen close to 2.5% earlier in the session.
France’s Cac40 and the Dax in Germany both experienced steep early session falls, before recovering to stand over one two percentage points higher respectively.
Oil prices tumbling pic.twitter.com/jQis5FAaDl
— Ed Conway (@EdConwaySky) March 23, 2026
And Brent crude oil, which had earlier hit 114 dollars a barrel, is around 96 US dollars at the time of writing.
Trump’s “usual surprise on the markets” actually leaves “big questions unanswered, according to IG’s Chief Market Analyst, Chris Beauchamp.
“Hormuz remains closed, the damage to energy infrastructure is still there and it is unclear whether air strikes on other targets will continue,” he said.
This is absolutely insane:
— The Kobeissi Letter (@KobeissiLetter) March 23, 2026
At 7:04 AM ET today, President Trump said “the US and Iran have had productive discussions" to end the Iran War.
By 7:10 AM ET, the S&P 500 surged +240 points adding +$2 TRILLION in market cap.
27 minutes later, Iran completely denied all of… pic.twitter.com/yFpqpJo6aG
“While this was the headline investors have been hoping for, the fact that Brent has rebounded back above 100 dollars shows that markets remain sceptical.”
Iran parliament speaker Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf denied talks and accused Trump of trying to manipulate the markets.
“No negotiations have been held with the US, and fakenews is used to manipulate the financial and oil markets and escape the quagmire in which the US and Israel are trapped,” he said.
It is not yet clear how this comment may further impact market fluctuations.
Trump’s decision to “postpone” strikes on Iranian energy infrastructure was welcomed by Downing Street.
Even if the war ended tomorrow, we estimate that it would take at least four months to bring energy markets back to some semblance of normalcy:
— Gregg Carlstrom (@glcarlstrom) March 23, 2026
- it will take two to four weeks to rev up oil production, and up to seven weeks to restart Qatar's LNG plant
- shippers may hesitate…
“We have always said that a swift resolution to the war is in global interests and the Strait of Hormuz specifically needs to be reopened,” Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer's official spokesman said.
This afternoon, Sir Keir is due to chair an emergency COBRA meeting, which will have a focus on the economic impact of the war.
The PM will examine “every lever that’s available to Government”, he said.
Joining senior ministers including Chancellor Rachel Reeves, Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper and Energy Secretary Ed Miliband, is Bank of England chief Andrew Bailey.
And Ms Reeves is set to announce support measures for the economy in Parliament tomorrow, following the meeting.
Trump has been critical of Sir Keir’s response to the crisis, but the PM said he spoke to his American counterpart on Sunday night, with the pair agreeing that opening the strait was “essential” to a stable global energy market.
Sir Keir also warned the UK must be prepared for the Iran war to continue “for some time”.
“I think all our focus and energy has to be in the swift de-escalation, but we’ve got to plan on the basis that it could go on for some time, and that’s the way in which we’ll plan this afternoon,” he said to MPs at a meeting of the Liaison Committee.
He also said he had been “aware” of the talks between the US and Iran.
