Oil plunges, stocks mostly rise as Trump says Iran war over 'very soon' ~ EconomyLens.com

New York (AFP) – Oil prices sank and equities mostly rose Tuesday following a volatile session that came after President Donald Trump signaled that the US-Israeli war on Iran could end sooner than previously thought. International oil benchmark, Brent North Sea crude, plunged 11.3 percent to $87.80 a barrel, a day after it neared $120. The drop in oil prices gathered pace as member states of the International Energy Agency met for crisis talks to assess “the current security of supply” and the potential release of emergency stocks.

In a statement following a Paris meeting of G7 energy ministers, IEA executive director Fatih Birol said he was “in close contact” with energy ministers from key energy producers and consumers regarding the situation. The Paris and London stock markets gained over 1.5 percent after European gas prices sank 15 percent, helping ease concerns over a renewed surge of global inflation. Frankfurt ended the day up 2.4 percent. Asian stock markets rallied, with Seoul up more than five percent and Tokyo ending with a gain of 2.9 percent. “Renewed optimism on the back of falling oil prices helped global stock indices recover, most strongly in Asia and Europe,” said analyst Axel Rudolph at IG trading platform.

Wall Street stocks also spent much of the session in positive territory but lost ground after Energy Secretary Chris Wright deleted a social media post that said the US Navy escorted an oil tanker through the Strait of Hormuz. White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said the Navy had not done so. The broad-based S&P 500 finished down 0.2 percent. Jack Ablin of Cresset Capital Management said oil remains at the top of investor concerns. “It’s sort of the lifeblood of the global economy,” Ablin said. “Anything that could potentially disrupt that is of concern to investors worldwide.”

Investors were also digesting Trump’s remarks Monday that the campaign was far ahead of his initial timeline of around a month. “It’s going to be ended soon, and if it starts up again they’ll be hit even harder,” he told a news conference in Florida on Monday. Iran has responded by vowing to block Gulf oil exports and asserting that it, not the US, would “determine the end of the war.” Trump warned Iran against mining the Strait of Hormuz, through which nearly 20 percent of the world’s crude oil usually transits from the Gulf to world markets. “If for any reason mines were placed, and they are not removed forthwith, the military consequences to Iran will be at a level never seen before,” Trump said Tuesday in a social media post.

– Key figures at around 2115 GMT –

Brent North Sea Crude: DOWN 11.3 percent at $87.80 per barrel

West Texas Intermediate: DOWN 11.9 percent at $83.45 per barrel

New York – Dow: DOWN 0.1 percent at 47,706.51 (close)

New York – S&P 500: DOWN 0.2 percent at 6,781.48 (close)

New York – Nasdaq Composite: FLAT at 22,697.10 (close)

London – FTSE 100: UP 1.6 percent at 10,412.24 (close)

Paris – CAC 40: UP 1.8 percent at 8,057.36 (close)

Frankfurt – DAX: UP 2.4 percent at 23,968.63 (close)

Seoul – Kospi: UP 5.4 percent at 5,532.59 (close)

Tokyo – Nikkei 225: UP 2.9 percent at 54,248.39 (close)

Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: UP 2.2 percent at 25,959.90 (close)