Hope for Iran off ramp sends oil prices sharply lower as global stocks rise
Mar 24, 2026, 8:10 PM | Updated: Mar 25, 2026, 7:42 am
Wall Street pointed toward solid gains and oil prices fell 6% Wednesday over the possibility of a de-escalation in Iran and negotiations with the United States.
S&P futures rose 1% before the opening bell, as did futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average. Nasdaq futures gained 1.1%.
Oil prices retreated on growing hopes for a de-escalation. Brent crude, the international standard, fell more $6.26 to $93.97 per barrel. Benchmark U.S. crude gave back $5.63 early Wednesday to $86.72 a barrel.
The Trump administration has offered a 15-point ceasefire plan to Iran, but an Iranian military spokesperson mocked the U.S. attempt at a ceasefire deal Wednesday.
The conditional ceasefire offering comes as the U.S. military is preparing to deploy at least 1,000 troops from the 82nd Airborne Division to the Middle East in the coming days, according to sources with knowledge of the move who spoke on the condition of anonymity.
President Donald Trump’s claims of progress being made from talks with Iran this week and his postponement on Monday of a deadline to “obliterate” Iran’s power plants over the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz also fueled optimism that an end to the Iran war could come soon.
With the Strait of Hormuz being a key waterway for crude oil and liquefied natural gas transport, oil prices have recently settled lower since spiking at the onset of the war more than three weeks ago.
The drop in oil prices sent most of the energy sector lower, with ConocoPhillips, Exxon and Chevron all losing between 1% and 2%. Airlines benefitted from the retreat in energy prices. Delta Air Lines gained 1.8%, United rose 3.2% and American picked up 2.3%.
Facebook parent company Meta was up about 1% after New Mexico jury determined Tuesday that the company knowingly harmed children’s mental health and concealed what it knew about child sexual exploitation on its social media platforms.
Jurors found Meta liable for a penalty of $375 million, less than one-fifth of what prosecutors were seeking. Meta said it would appeal.
At midday in Europe, Britain’s FTSE 100 rose 1.4%, France’s CAC 40 was up 1.6% and Germany’s DAX was 1.7% higher.
Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 was up 2.9% to 53,749.62. South Korea’s Kospi gained 1.6% to 5,642.21.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose 1.1% to 25,335.95, while the Shanghai Composite index was 1.3% higher at 3,931.84. Labubu doll maker Pop Mart’s Hong Kong-listed shares fell 22.5%, after it announced annual revenue for last year that was largely in line with analysts’ estimates.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 climbed 1.9%. Taiwan’s Taiex was up 2.5%.
In other trading early Wednesday, gold resumed its rise, gaining 4% early Wednesday to $4,579 per ounce. It was above $5,000 earlier this month.
