WASHINGTON: The International Monetary Fund warned on Thursday that continuing disruptions due to the Iran war meant its global economic outlook was moving towards an &quot;adverse&quot; scenario, with growth pared down and greater risks to inflation. Last month, the multilateral lender&#39;s World Economic Outlook predicted global growth would drop to 3.1% in 2026 in its &quot;reference&quot; scenario, but warned of a bleaker outlook if the war were to drag on. In the &quot;adverse&quot; scenario, where oil prices remain higher for longer, inflation expectations become less stable and financial conditions tighten, growth would slow to 2.5%, the Fund said at the time. On Thursday, the Fund&#39;s chief spokesperson said the global economy was headed towards this less auspicious situation. &quot;We are moving into the adverse scenario, but inflation expectations are still reasonably well anchored, and financial conditions still remain accommodative,&quot; Julie Kozack told reporters in Washington. The Fund also has a &quot;severe&quot; scenario, in which growth slows to 2% and inflation flares to 6%. An update of the World Economic Outlook is due in July. The US-Israel war on Iran has engulfed the Middle East in violence, with Tehran&#39;s retaliatory action targeting Washington&#39;s regional allies and virtually blocking the Strait of Hormuz. The key waterway normally sees about a fifth of global oil and gas supplies pass through it, and the blockade has seen energy prices skyrocket worldwide. The IMF was in &quot;active discussions&quot; with member states over their needs, and &quot;many countries are actually asking us for support in the policy area,&quot; said Kozack. During the IMF&#39;s spring meetings last month, Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said as many as 12 countries could require financial assistance from the Fund, with $20-50 billion required in total. Kozack said that discussions on that financial assistance were continuing, but that the Fund was not yet prepared to disclose which specific countries were involved. The IMF spokesperson also warned of the risks to food security due to the war, with a third of the world&#39;s fertilizer supply also stopped due to the blockade. &quot;We know from history that when fertilizer prices increase, that it takes about six months or so for this to translate into increased food prices and, in some cases, reductions in yields and food security issues,&quot; she said.

Americas

Middle East

In the "adverse" scenario, where oil prices remain higher for longer, inflation expectations become less stable and financial conditions tighten, growth would slow to 2.5%, the Fund said at the time.

IMF sees risks to global growth forecast over sustained Iran war

Web Desk

China's President Xi Jinping (L) looks at US President Donald Trump as they attend a state banquet at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on May 14, 2026. (AFP)

US president says President Xi offered China's help to open the strait, pledges not to send military equipment to aid Iran; Iranian media reports that naval forces allowed Chinese ships to pass through Hormuz; Israel, Lebanon to open new round of peace talks in Washington.




Day 76: All you need to know about US-Israel war on Iran

LONDON: Oil prices fell, and global stock markets traded mixed on Thursday, awaiting an update on a US plan to end the Middle East war and reopen the Strait of Hormuz. After plunging more than 10 per cent at one point on Wednesday on hopes of peace, crude futures fell nearly another 4 per cent. The benchmark international oil contract, Brent Crude, was back under $100 per barrel. European stock markets declined after big gains the previous session, while leading Asian markets climbed. Tokyo soared 5.6 percent, which largely reflected the resumption of trading in Japan after the country&#39;s public holidays this week. &quot;The wild streak of enthusiasm which hit markets amid hopes for a major de-escalation in the Iran conflict is tempering,&quot; noted Susannah Streeter, chief investment strategist at Wealth Club. &quot;There&#39;s a realisation that there are more hurdles to climb for a longer-term resolution to be agreed, even though Iran is reported to be studying a US peace proposal aimed at formally ending the conflict.&quot; US President Donald Trump said an agreement could be near after positive talks, with Iran adding that it would pass on its latest position to mediator Pakistan. The war, launched by the United States and Israel in late February, has seen Iran respond with attacks across the Middle East and impose a chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz, the gateway to the Gulf oil and gas industries and a strategic trade route. In foreign exchange on Thursday, the dollar lost some of its safe-haven support. Investors in Tokyo were closely watching the yen after speculation of intervention by the Japanese government to prop up the beleaguered currency. Norway&#39;s central bank on Thursday hiked its guiding rate by a quarter point to 4.25 percent, citing a risk that the war in the Middle East could worsen already elevated inflation. &quot;Inflation is too high and has run above target for several years,&quot; Norges Bank governor Ida Wolden Bache said in a statement. Earnings boostAway from the war, there has been a fresh wave of cash pumped into the technology sector as traders snap up all things artificial intelligence, helped by standout earnings from Apple, Google parent Alphabet, Microsoft and Samsung during the ongoing first-quarter reporting season. &quot;It does feel as if US stock indices are in a melt-up phase,&quot; said Trade Nation analyst David Morrison, using an expression for a situation when a large of amount of money is invested in stocks in a short period of time. Both the S&amp;P 500 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite set fresh all-time highs as trading got underway, even if they only edged higher. &quot;FOMO (fear of missing out) is playing an important role here, yet it&#39;s difficult to work out what could trigger a significant pullback,&quot; said Morrison. &quot;That in itself is a concern.&quot; Emirates Group on Thursday announced a three-percent rise in annual profits to $5.7 billion despite severe disruption to flights owing to the war. Key figures at around 1330 GMTBrent North Sea Crude: DOWN 3.7 percent at $97.50 a barrel West Texas Intermediate: DOWN 3.9 percent at $91.37 a barrel New York - DOW: UP 0.4 percent at 50,109.76 points New York - S&amp;P 500: UP 0.1 percent at 7,373.25 New York - Nasdaq Composite: UP 0.2 percent at 25,877.65 London - FTSE 100: DOWN 0.8 percent at 10,355.47 Paris - CAC 40: DOWN less than 0.1 percent at 8,293.01 Frankfurt - DAX: DOWN 0.2 percent at 24,867.36 Tokyo - Nikkei 225: UP 5.6 percent at 62,833.84 (close) Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: UP 1.6 percent at 26,626.28 (close) Shanghai - Composite: UP 0.5 percent at 4,180.09 (close) Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1774 from $1.1752 on Wednesday Pound/dollar: UP at $1.3625 from $1.3594 Dollar/yen: DOWN at 156.30 yen from 156.39 yen Euro/pound: DOWN at 86.43 pence from 86.45 pence

Customers refuel their vehicles at a gas station of Nayara Energy Limited, in Bengaluru on December 12, 2025. (File photo: AFP)

Business

After plunging more than 10 per cent at one point on Wednesday on hopes of peace, crude futures fall nearly another 4 percent.

Oil prices drop awaiting Mideast peace progress

Web Desk/AFP

Says negotiations are taking place via telephone calls with Islamabad; Iran judiciary chief says Tehran open to US talks but against policy 'imposition'; Israeli forces continue to destroy towns across southern Lebanon.


Day 63: All you need to know about US-Israel war on Iran

Supreme leader Khamenei says US has been defeated in its war on Tehran; Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian says 'any attempt to impose a maritime blockade or restrictions is contrary to international law ... and is doomed to fail'; US President Donald Trump says Tehran's navy is "at the bottom of the sea."

Day 62: All you need to know about US-Israel war on Iran

HONG KONG, China: Equities fell and oil prices rose Thursday amid continuing US-Iran tensions. Investors have spent most of the week upbeat that a breakthrough to end the seven-week conflict will be made soon, while healthy earnings and a resumption of the AI trade has also provided support. Crude prices jumped as much as four percent in early Asian business after global security monitors and Iran&#39;s Revolutionary Guards said Iranian forces had seized two ships and fired on a third in the Strait of Hormuz. Tehran has said vessels must seek permission to leave or enter the Gulf through the waterway, which in peacetime accounts for around a fifth of the world&#39;s oil and gas exports along with other vital commodities. However, the White House said Donald Trump did not consider the move to be a ceasefire violation because the vessels are not American or Israeli. Meanwhile, Iran&#39;s parliament speaker said the Islamic republic would not reopen the Strait as long as the US naval blockade remained, calling it a &quot;blatant violation&quot; of the two countries&#39; ceasefire. &quot;A complete ceasefire only has meaning if it is not violated through a naval blockade... Reopening the Strait of Hormuz is not possible amid a blatant violation of the ceasefire,&quot; speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said on X. Still, Trump&#39;s Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said he &quot;has not set a firm deadline to receive an Iranian proposal&quot; for talks. &quot;Ultimately, the timeline will be dictated by the commander in chief,&quot; she told journalists. Oil prices Oil prices remained elevated Thursday, with Brent holding above $100 following a surge to more than $106 in the morning. Equities fell, though, with Tokyo, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Sydney, Singapore, Taipei, Mumbai, Bangkok and Wellington all down. But Seoul rose to a new record thanks to a fresh rally in the tech sector that has been the backbone of a surge in the Kospi index this year.&nbsp;London and Frankfurt fell but Paris edged up.&nbsp; &quot;Whether it&#39;s conflict fatigue or confidence that the conflict between the US and Iran will be resolved soon, there is limited evidence that the rise in the oil price dampened bond and equity markets,&quot; said National Australia Bank&#39;s Skye Masters. However, she added that the Washington Post had reported a senior Defense Department warned it could take six months to fully clear the Strait of Hormuz of mines and that such an operation would probably not unlikely start before the end of the war. Financial markets &quot;It is questionable whether financial markets are correctly pricing the reality that supply constraints will remain an issue for some time,&quot; she wrote. Raphael Olszyna-Marzys, of Bank J Safra Sarasin, added: &quot;Financial markets are pricing a high likelihood that traffic through the Strait of Hormuz will soon normalize. &quot;Our game-theory model suggests that a narrow agreement to reopen the strait is in both parties&#39; best interests. This outcome remains our base case. But it also reveals that a misreading of the other party&#39;s intentions could lead to a further ratcheting-up of tensions before we get there.&quot; Investors took some heart from strong earnings reports, with South Korean chip titan SK hynix posting a nearly 400% jump in net profit that hit a record for January-March thanks to the artificial intelligence boom. That came after Tesla announced forecast-topping first-quarter profits and Texas Instruments offered a healthy outlook. Bloomberg said almost 80% of the S&amp;P 500 firms that have reported first-quarter earnings had beaten analyst estimates so far. Key figures at 0810 GMT West Texas Intermediate: UP 0.8% at $93.74 a barrelBrent North Sea Crude: UP 1.0% at $102.92 a barrelTokyo - Nikkei 225: DOWN 0.8% at 59,140.23 (close)Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: DOWN 1.0% at 25,915.20Shanghai - Composite: DOWN 0.3% at 4,093.25 (close)London - FTSE 100: DOWN 0.3% at 10,442.71Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.1700 from $1.1709 on WednesdayPound/dollar: DOWN at $1.3488 from $1.3506Dollar/yen: DOWN at 159.63 yen from 159.49 yenEuro/pound: UP at 86.76 pence from 86.70 pence

Crude prices jumped as much as four percent in early Asian business after global security monitors and Iran's Revolutionary Guards said Iranian forces had seized two ships and fired on a third in the Strait of Hormuz.

Stocks sink and oil rises amid continuing US-Iran tensions

HONG KONG: Oil prices climbed, and stocks fell on Thursday on fears over the nascent US-Iran ceasefire after Tehran threatened to resume hostilities after Israel launched a major bombardment of Lebanon. Equity markets across the globe soared and crude plunged on Wednesday after US President Donald Trump announced the two-week halt in the war, and the Islamic Republic said it would reopen the Strait of Hormuz as peace talks took place. But with the deal less than a day old, cracks were already appearing as Tel Aviv said it did not include Israel&#39;s fight against Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon as it continued attacks on its northern neighbor. That view was echoed by Vice President JD Vance, who said: &quot;If Iran wants to let this negotiation fall apart ... over Lebanon, which has nothing to do with them, and which the United States never once said was part of the ceasefire, that&#39;s ultimately their choice.&quot; Iran said that it broke the terms of the deal as reports said the vital Hormuz waterway &mdash; through which a fifth of the world&#39;s oil and gas passes &mdash; was shut again. However, that came as Tehran announced alternative routes for ships travelling through the Strait, citing the risk of sea mines. The country&#39;s parliament speaker, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, posted on X that the &quot;workable basis on which to negotiate&quot; had already been violated, making further talks &quot;unreasonable.&quot; He listed three alleged US violations of the truce plan: the continued attacks in Lebanon, a drone entering Iranian airspace, and a denial of the country&#39;s right to enrichment. Hezbollah said on Thursday it had fired rockets towards Israel in response to its &quot;violation.&quot; Meanwhile, a senior US official said Tehran&#39;s 10-point plan was not the same set of conditions the White House had agreed to. Fears that the ceasefire could fall apart while crude remains stuck in Hormuz saw West Texas Intermediate oil jump around 3% Thursday, having plunged more than 16% the day before. Brent was up more than two percent following a 13 percent drop. Equities also gave up some of their gains. Tokyo, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Sydney, Singapore, Seoul, and Taipei were all down. Attention is also turning to crunch talks in Pakistan that are expected on Friday or Saturday, with Vance leading the US delegation. &quot;Many questions remain with the 10-point plan that Trump has received from Iran (which includes Iranian control of the Strait of Hormuz, US acceptance of Iran&#39;s uranium enrichment programme, the end of all sanctions, and withdrawal of the US military from the Gulf region) is at odds with Trump&#39;s 15-point peace plan,&quot; wrote National Australia Bank&#39;s Skye Masters. Still, observers warned that an end to the conflict would not see a quick return to normal, with crude prices still elevated and key regional infrastructure targeted that could take billions of dollars and at least months to repair. Shipping journal Lloyd&#39;s List estimated that around 800 ships have been stuck in the Gulf since the end of February, when hostilities broke out. Still, FOREX.com analyst Fawad Razaqzada said: &quot;Investors are confident that oil prices could ease further and the Strait of Hormuz will reopen again and hopefully stay open beyond the two-week ceasefire period.&quot;

Equity markets across globe soar, crude plunges after US President Trump announces two-week halt in war, Iran’s parliament speaker says "workable basis on which to negotiate" had already been violated, making further talks "unreasonable.”

Crude rises, stocks fall on fears over nascent Iran ceasefire

DHAKA: Bangladeshi&nbsp;Foreign Minister Dr Khalilur Rahman has formally requested the United States to grant Bangladesh a special waiver to import refined diesel and other petroleum products derived from Russian sources to ease energy challenges, state-run Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha (BSS) news agency reported on Wednesday. The request was made during a meeting with US Energy Secretary Chris Wright at the Department of Energy in Washington DC on Tuesday.&nbsp; During the talks, the foreign minister underscored Bangladesh&#39;s ongoing energy challenges stemming from global supply chain disruptions, particularly ahead of the critical planting season, and stressed the need to ensure uninterrupted fuel supply for farmers and safeguard food security. Direct waiverRahman explained that Bangladesh could not take advantage of the earlier limited world-wide waiver by US on Russian oil at sea since none of the tankers were bound for Bangladesh at that time. In addition to seeking a direct waiver, the two sides discussed the options to buy more refined oil out of Russian crude from third countries to meet immediate need. US Energy Secretary Wright acknowledged the energy challenges Bangladesh is facing and expressed his country&#39;s commitment to support Bangladesh during these difficult times to help ensure its energy security. &#39;Positively consider&#39; He said the US will &#39;positively consider&#39; the requests of Bangladesh and assured that he and his team would work closely with the relevant departments of the US government to this end. The two sides also discussed longer-term cooperation for sustainable energy solutions for Bangladesh and the prospects of increasing procurement of US energy products. Secretary Chris Wright was assisted by Chief of Staff to the Secretary Carl Cole, Senior Adviser to the Secretary Audrey Robertson, Senior Adviser to the Secretary Andrew Rapp, Director, Office of Asian Affairs Margaux Murali and Fellow, Office of Asian Affairs Hamna Khan. From Bangladesh side, Bangladesh Ambassador to the USA Tareq Md Ariful Islam, Deputy Chief of Mission DM Salahuddin Mahmud and Economic Minister Dr Md Fazle Rabbi attended the meeting with the foreign minister.

FM Bangladesh Khalil ur Rahman (File Photo: BSS)

Bangladesh

Bangladesh has asked the United States for a special waiver to import Russian-derived fuel to address urgent energy and food security concerns.

Bangladesh seeks US waiver to import Russian fuel

HONG KONG: Oil prices fell Friday after Donald Trump again pushed back a deadline for Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, though most equities also dropped as traders shrugged at the news following a series of conflicting messaging from the White House. The US president had warned last Saturday he would obliterate the Islamic Republic&#39;s energy sites if it did not unblock the crucial waterway within 48 hours, but pushed that back five days, citing positive peace talks, which Tehran denied had taken place. But after days of strikes by both sides and mixed reports of negotiations -- including the trading of multi-point demands -- he announced Thursday that he would again delay the attacks to April 6 after a request from Tehran. &quot;Talks are ongoing and, despite erroneous statements to the contrary by the Fake News Media, and others, they are going very well,&quot; Trump posted on his Truth Social platform. &quot;As per Iranian Government request... I am pausing the period of Energy Plant destruction by 10 Days to Monday, April 6, 2026, at 8 P.M., Eastern Time,&quot; he posted. Trump had earlier denied he was desperate for a deal to end the war, despite the Islamic Republic&#39;s cool response to an American peace plan and fears the spike in oil prices would fan inflation. Trump later told a cabinet meeting Iran had allowed 10 oil tankers passage through the Strait of Hormuz -- through which about a fifth of world oil and gas pass -- to show it was serious about talks. The Iranian news agency Tasnim said the country&#39;s response to Washington&#39;s 15-point plan to end the war &quot;was officially sent last night through intermediaries, and Iran is awaiting the other side&#39;s response&quot;. The report, citing an unnamed official, said officials had called for an end to US-Israeli attacks on Iran and groups elsewhere in the region. It also called for war reparations and Iran&#39;s &quot;sovereignty&quot; over the Strait of Hormuz be respected. However, Trump&#39;s announcement came as the Wall Street Journal cited Department of Defense officials as saying the Pentagon was considering sending as many as 10,000 extra ground troops to the Middle East. Oil prices fell more than one percent on Friday, though that only partially pared the previous day&#39;s surge amid growing anxiety that the conflict will last far longer than first thought. Brent is up almost 50% since the war began on Feb. 28, while West Texas Intermediate has risen around 40%. Equities struggled following hefty losses in Wall Street. Tokyo and Seoul, which had been the standout performers in the first two months of the year, were among the biggest losers, while Hong Kong, Sydney, Wellington, Taipei Jakarta and Manila were also sharply lower. Shanghai and Singapore fluctuated. Investors are also increasingly sceptical about the messaging from the White House, with Trump often flipping between threats and talk of peace. &quot;A ten-day extension sounds like breathing room, but in market terms, it feels more like a trader rolling a losing position forward, hoping the next candle delivers what the last one refused to give,&quot; said SPI Asset Management&#39;s Stephen Innes, referring to an investors analysis tool. &quot;Time has been purchased, not clarity. And the market knows the difference.&quot; And National Australia Bank&#39;s Ray Attrill said: &quot;Whether peace talks are taking place between the US and Iran remains debatable, Iran insisting that exchanges of letters via a friendly intermediary (presumed to be Pakistan) does not constitute talks.&quot; &#39;Worst disruptions&#39; Meanwhile, the World Trade Organisation warned the global trading system was experiencing the &quot;worst disruptions in the past 80 years&quot;, while the World Bank said it was prepared to provide immediate financial assistance to emerging market countries. That came as the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development warned US inflation could hit more than four percent this year as a result of the spike in crude prices. That compares with its previous projection of 2.8%. The prospect of another spike in the cost of living led several Federal Reserve officials to express concern about the outlook for the world&#39;s top economy and suggested interest rates were unlikely to come down any time soon. With the economic impact worsening, governments around the world are being forced to act. Spain approved a sweeping $5.8 billion package including steep cuts to energy taxes, while Poland&#39;s prime minister announced a series of measures to address soaring fuel costs, including reduced taxes and price ceilings. And South Korea said it will roll out a $17 billion &quot;wartime&quot; supplementary budget and expand fuel tax cuts. Key figures at around 0230 GMT&nbsp;Tokyo - Nikkei 225: DOWN 0.9% at 53,145.33 (break) Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: DOWN 0.3% at 24,787.31 Shanghai - Composite: FLAT at 3,888.09 West Texas Intermediate: DOWN 1.5% at $93.07 a barrel Brent North Sea Crude: DOWN 1.8% at $106.12 a barrel Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1537 from $1.1523 on Thursday Pound/dollar: UP at $1.3339 from $1.3313 Dollar/yen: DOWN at 159.58 yen from 159.83 yen Euro/pound: DOWN at 86.50 pence from 86.55 pence New York - Dow: DOWN 1.0% at 45,960.11 (close) London - FTSE 100: DOWN 1.3% at 9,972.17 (close)

Oil prices fell on Friday after Donald Trump again pushed back a deadline for Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, though most equities also dropped as traders shrugged at the news following a series of conflicting messaging from the White House.

Oil drops as Trump pauses Iran strikes, but stock traders nervous

NEW YORK: Oil prices jumped, and equities slid on Thursday as hopes for a peace deal between the United States and Iran wavered, with US President Donald Trump threatening to &quot;obliterate&quot; the country even as he claimed negotiations to end the conflict were ongoing. Markets had been buoyed at the start of this week by Trump saying that strikes targeting Iran&#39;s energy infrastructure would be postponed, adding that the two sides were in peace talks. But uncertainty over the talks, continued strikes by all sides in the conflict, and the virtual closure of the Strait of Hormuz &mdash; through which around 20% of oil and liquefied natural gas normally passes &mdash; have cast a shadow over market sentiment. On Thursday, Trump said Iran had allowed 10 oil tankers to sail through the waterway as a &quot;present,&quot; and pushed back a deadline for strikes on Iranian power plants to April 6. His comments on delaying strikes came after the US close, with oil paring the massive gains it had made through the day. Earlier, Brent crude closed up 5.7% at $108.01 per barrel, and West Texas Intermediate ended up 4.6% at $94.48. Kim Forrest, chief investment officer at Bokeh Capital Partners, said the war makes &quot;for really nervous investors.&quot; &quot;Every day, there&#39;s only one or two stories that are really driving stocks, and all else falls from there. So, when they&#39;re in a sour mood, it&#39;s going to be a big, bad selling day.&quot; Wall Street&#39;s main stock indices were down, with the Nasdaq furthest in the red, losing 2.38%. European and Asian markets also ended with losses. &quot;When the oil price surges, the market playbook stays the same: stocks and bonds sell off,&quot; said Kathleen Brooks, research director at XTB. The yield on government bonds rose across the board. Conflicting messages from the US and Iran are &quot;raising questions about whether there is really an off-ramp to the conflict in the days ahead,&quot; said Deutsche Bank&#39;s Jim Reid. Rival plans Washington was said to have presented a 15-point plan to end the war. Tehran&#39;s state-run TV reported officials had put forward their own five conditions for hostilities to end. On Thursday, Trump said taking control of Iran&#39;s oil was an option, as Washington had done after ousting Venezuela&#39;s leader in a military operation. Pakistan&#39;s Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar confirmed Thursday that indirect negotiations between the United States and Iran were being held, using Islamabad as an intermediary. &quot;Pressure on energy prices, shipping flows and broader financial conditions remains one of the few meaningful sources of leverage (Iran) retains,&quot; said Saxo Markets&#39; Charu Chanana. &quot;There is therefore little incentive to relinquish that leverage prematurely, particularly if market stress strengthens its negotiating position,&quot; she added. The OECD on Thursday cut its eurozone growth outlook and forecast higher inflation for 2026 as energy prices have skyrocketed. The conflict has also weighed on German consumer sentiment heading into April, a survey showed Thursday, adding to the woes facing Europe&#39;s top economy. France, which holds the G7 Presidency, will on Monday host a meeting bringing together the group&#39;s finance ministers, energy ministers, and central bank governors. Key figures at around 20:15 GMT Brent North Sea Crude: UP 5.7% at $108.01 a barrel West Texas Intermediate: UP 4.6% at $94.48 a barrel New York &mdash; Dow: DOWN 1.0% at 45,960.11 points (close) New York &mdash; S&amp;P 500: DOWN 1.7% at 6,477.16 (close) New York &mdash; Nasdaq: DOWN 2.4% at 21,408.08 (close) London &mdash; FTSE 100: DOWN 1.3% at 9,972.17 (close) Paris &mdash; CAC 40: DOWN 1.0% at 7,769.31 (close) Frankfurt &mdash; DAX: DOWN 1.5% at 22,612.97 (close) Tokyo - Nikkei 225: DOWN 0.3 percent at 53,603.65 (close) Hong Kong &mdash; Hang Seng Index: DOWN 1.9% at 24,856.43 (close) Shanghai &mdash; Composite: DOWN 1.1% at 3,889.08 (close) Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.1523 from $1.1565 on Wednesday Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.3313 from $1.3365 Dollar/yen: UP at 159.83 yen from 159.47 yen Euro/pound: UP at 86.55 pence from 86.52 pence

US President Trump says Iran had allowed 10 oil tankers to sail through the waterway as a "present"; pushes back deadline for strikes on Iranian power plants to April 6.

Articles tagged with "International Oil Prices"