U.S.-Iran Ceasefire Agreement Causes Oil Prices to Plummet, European Energy Stocks Drop Significantly

Investing.com - On Wednesday, after the U.S. and Iran reached a conditional ceasefire agreement, oil prices plunged, and European energy stocks fell sharply as a result. This conflict, which has lasted for more than five weeks, has left nearly a dozen countries with more than 5,000 people dead; among them, the number of civilian deaths inside Iran has exceeded 1,600. The agreement helped ease tensions.

As of 07:22 a.m. Greenwich Mean Time, Shell shares were down more than 6%, British Petroleum was down about 8%, TotalEnergies fell about 5.4%, and Eni plunged 7.2%. Galp and Repsol were also lower, down about 6.2% and 8%, respectively, while Maurel et Prom plunged even more, by 18.7%.

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Oil prices were severely hit by the selloff. Brent crude plunged 13% to $94.80, reaching its lowest level since March 25, and briefly touched a low of $91.70 during the session. WTI crude fell nearly 15% to $96.21.

Large-cap stocks moved in the opposite direction. The FTSE 100 rose 2.7%, Germany’s DAX index rose nearly 5%, France’s CAC 40 index rose 3.4%, and Europe’s STOXX 600 index jumped 3.6%.

U.S. stocks also moved higher, with S&P 500 futures up 2.6% to 6,828.50 points.

The situation eased due to a statement by U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday night, in which he said he had agreed to pause the planned attacks on Iran’s infrastructure for two weeks.

He wrote on Truth Social that the move is “conditional on Iran’s Islamic Republic agreeing to fully, immediately, and safely open the Strait of Hormuz.”

Abbas Araqchi, Iran’s foreign minister, representing the country’s Supreme National Security Council, said Tehran’s armed forces will “stop its defensive actions.”

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