THE MIND OF THE PEOPLE – World oil prices plunged nearly 15 percent and global stock markets jumped sharply after US President Donald Trump announced a temporary ceasefire and Iran said the Strait of Hormuz would reopen over the next two weeks under the supervision of their military.
Quoting The Guardian, Brent crude oil, the international benchmark, fell 14.4 percent to 93.48 US dollars per barrel, while US crude oil futures also fell 14.7 percent to 96.27 US dollars per barrel.
Despite the sharp drop, oil prices are still well above levels before the war began at the end of February. Iran’s National Security Council confirmed it had accepted a two-week ceasefire on the condition that the attacks stop, and said peace talks with the US would begin in Islamabad on Friday.
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Stock markets around the world immediately responded positively. In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei 225 index rose more than 5 percent, South Korea’s Kospi jumped 7.5 percent, and Australia’s ASX 200 rose 2.55 percent.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose 3.1 percent and China’s CSI 300 rose 3.2 percent. European stock markets are also claimed to be ready for a strong rally with Germany’s DAX index up 5.3 percent and Britain’s FTSE 100 up 2.9 percent in futures trading.
In the bond market, the 10-year US Treasury yield fell to 4.24 percent from 4.30 percent previously. The price of gold rose more than 2 percent to 4,812 US dollars per troy ounce, while Bitcoin was claimed to have risen 2.9 percent and Ether rose 5.6 percent.
Jim Reid, market analyst from Deutsche Bank, said investors were ‘breathing a sigh of relief’ because there was a way out of the war that was being pursued. However…
