Terms of ongoing ceasefire may mean relief for investors
Iran's foreign minister Abbas Araqchi has announced on Friday that passage for all commercial vessels through the Strait of Hormuz is open for the remainder of the 10-day ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah in Southern Lebanon.
"In line with the ceasefire in Lebanon, the passage for all commercial vessels through [the] Strait of Hormuz is declared completely open for the remaining period of ceasefire, on the coordinated route as already announced by Ports and Maritime Organisation of the Islamic Rep. of Iran," Araqchi said in a post on X (formerly Twitter).
The Brent crude international oil benchmark dropped 11.2 per cent to $88.27 (USD) per barrel following the announcement. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.54 per cent in the first hour of trading on Friday. The S&P 500 rose just under one per cent and the Nasdaq 100 gained 1.18 per cent. The S&P/TSX composite was up 0.45 per cent in the same period.
President Donald Trump reacted almost immediately on his Truth Social platform posting, "IRAN HAS JUST ANNOUNCED THAT THE STRAIT OF IRAN IS FULLY OPEN AND READY FOR FULL PASSAGE. THANK YOU!"
This is an evolving story and further updates will come.
