Oil prices surge, stocks tumble as Trump declares end to Iran ceasefire

Oil prices spiked and stock markets dropped sharply on Wednesday after U.S. President Donald Trump announced that the ceasefire with Iran was “over,” following renewed military strikes in the Middle East.

The latest escalation began with Iranian attacks on vessels in the strategically vital Strait of Hormuz, a key shipping route for global oil supplies.

Speaking at a NATO summit in Turkey, Trump declared the truce finished but left room for potential future negotiations.

The international benchmark, Brent North Sea crude, jumped more than 5% to roughly $78 a barrel, while the U.S. benchmark, West Texas Intermediate, also rallied 5%.

In Europe, Paris and Frankfurt each fell around 2%, with London down nearly 1.5% by midday.

“Geopolitical risks are rising” for financial markets, noted Kathleen Brooks, research director at trading firm XTB.

The U.S. launched extensive airstrikes on Iran this week in response to the ship attacks, triggering retaliatory strikes against American bases in the Gulf. Washington also revoked a temporary sanctions waiver that had allowed Iranian oil exports.

Brooks added that for Brent to extend gains above $80 per barrel, “we would need to see another U.S. naval blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, which would stop Iran from selling its oil and cause a major escalation in tensions.”

Asian equities also suffered, with geopolitical jitters compounding a broader retreat from the tech sector over concerns about massive spending on artificial intelligence.

Seoul’s Kospi—a standout in Asia’s tech rally—plunged more than 5% and has now dropped over 20% since hitting a record high last month.

Samsung took another hit following a rout on Tuesday, despite forecasting a roughly 19-fold jump in second-quarter operating profit year-on-year, driven by strong demand for AI chips. The company and rival SK Hynix both tumbled around 6%.

“Investors have been spooked in recent weeks by fears of excessive spending in the AI world and rich valuations in parts of the tech space, causing widespread profit-taking,” said Dan Coatsworth, head of markets at AJ Bell.

Losses were also seen in Tokyo and Shanghai. However, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index rose 3% as investors snapped up beaten-down Chinese tech stocks, with Alibaba surging over 12%, and JD.com and Tencent each gaining nearly 4%.

The dollar strengthened against major peers, as the prospect of another disruption to Middle East oil supplies fueled worries that inflation could stay elevated longer than expected, pressuring the Federal Reserve to consider interest rate hikes.

Key figures around 1100 GMT:

· Brent North Sea Crude: UP 5.1% at $77.93/barrel
· West Texas Intermediate: UP 5.0% at $73.95/barrel
· London FTSE 100: DOWN 1.4% at 10,516.16
· Paris CAC 40: DOWN 2.0% at 8,265.75
· Frankfurt DAX: DOWN 2.1% at 24,929.06
· Seoul Kospi: DOWN 5.4% at 7,246.79 (close)
· Tokyo Nikkei 225: DOWN 2.1% at 66,819.05 (close)
· Hong Kong Hang Seng: UP 3.0% at 24,199.46 (close)
· Shanghai Composite: DOWN 0.5% at 3,970.88 (close)
· New York Dow: DOWN 0.3% at 52,925.15 (close)
· Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.1406 from $1.1415
· Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.3344 from $1.3360
· Dollar/yen: UP at 162.49 yen from 162.09 yen
· Euro/pound: UP at 85.49 pence from 85.44 pence

About The Author

Dele Fashomi

Dele Fashomi, seasoned journalist and communication teacher, is a holder of Master of Arts degree in Communication and Language Arts from the University of Ibadan in 1992/93.

Earlier, he had bagged a Bachelor degree from the same university in 1984, after which he proceeded to the Nigerian Institute of Journalism, Lagos, in 1990, for a postgraduate diploma in Journalism.

He had done many courses in communication, including the EU-BBC Editing Course in 2002.

Mr. Fashomi combines effectively the practice, research and teaching of communication. And to date, he has published two academic works in communication: Issues in Communication Technology and Policy (2010) and Economic and Social Issues in Advertising and PR (2013).

He had his first break in the Nigerian media in Concord Newspapers in 1990 and today, he has over two and half decades experience earned in several newspapers.

He has been part of many start-ups, such as The Republic (1987), The Comet (1999), The Anchor 2001 – 2002; Sun Newspapers (2003); Westerner newsmagazine (2005 – 2010) as Editor; National Life (2011) as Sunday Editor, and Newswatch Newspapers (2012- 2016) as Daily Editor.

Dele Fashomi is now the Publisher/Editor-in-Chief of Newstide247.com newspaper online, which he started in July 2015. He is also into biography writing, with many books in his trail, some of which he wrote alone and one he co- authored with his mentor, Mr Dare Babarinsa, entitled:  Olabiyi Durojaiye – DARE TO BE DiFFERENT. He also guided and collaborated with Pa Olatunji Odusanya in writing his autobiography – AGAINST ALL ODDS. There are many other books in the works under his pen.

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