Donald Trump has stated in the past hours that the US will leave Iran "very soon," within "two, maybe three weeks," regardless of whether an agreement is reached or not. After all, the situation in the Strait of Hormuz, blocked by Iranian forces, is no longer his concern. This was expressed in statements reported by the AFP: "All I have to do is get out of Iran, and we will do it very soon, and (oil prices) will come down."
Another shift in positions but with immediate results: in the stock markets, this Wednesday optimism is high. This is reflected in variables such as the 12% drop in the price of Brent crude oil, which before the European opening had its price at $104 compared to yesterday's $119, which saw a 6% increase due to Iran's statements that they would attack American companies in the region, adding more tension to the situation. Similarly, before the opening, the price of natural gas (in the Dutch TTF index) was showing a significant 5.33% decrease, with the megawatt/hour at 48 euros.
Finally, in the early stages of the European session, Brent's fall has been 4.48% with a price below the $100 level ($99.31). The plunge in natural gas, which has also been experiencing its own rally for weeks, has been 5%.
For the markets, meanwhile, other statements have gone unnoticed: those of Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, who has stated that the war - of over a month - will continue until the "terrorist regime" of Iran is crushed. It also seems to ignore the recent exchange of attacks between Middle Eastern countries, including the attack on a tanker off the coast of Qatar. No, the stock market remains positively expectant: the White House has announced that Trump will deliver "an important message" on Wednesday night (early morning in Europe) regarding the situation in Iran. All cards are on the table, and uncertainty is high.
In Europe, analysts predicted strong rebounds that have been confirmed at the opening bell of the session: in the case of the Ibex 35, it responded with a 3.10% surge, led by companies like IAG or the boost in banking and their expectations for the post-war scenario, contrasting with the sharp decline of Repsol (with a 4% drop) within the energy sector.
The Spanish index did not lead the strongest rise in Europe by a small margin: the German DAX did with a 3.04% increase at the European stock market opening, while the London Stock Exchange did the same with a 1.81% rise in the first minutes of trading. The Euro Stoxx50, an index where Europe's largest capitalized companies are listed, rose by 2.66%. Another (subtle) sign of the expectations held by investors: the euro appreciates by 0.27%, exchanging for 1.158 dollars.
All of this echoes the attitude in Asia, whose session concludes before the European one: in Japan, China, South Korea... all stock markets have anticipated an imminent end to the war with strong rebounds, as their major powers have also advanced their own peace plan in the Middle East. The Tokyo Nikkei surged by 5.24%; the Korean Kospi rose by 8.44%, and China's Hang Seng signed a 2.26% increase.
Asian markets follow the green trend that Wall Street closed with last night, with its main indices rising by 3.83% in the case of the Nasdaq; the S&P 500 doing the same with a 2.91% increase, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average by 2.49%. Although a more moderate growth is expected today, yesterday was one of its best in recent years, with a strong focus on communication and technology sector values.