Brent crude oil back over $100 a barrel as optimism over Middle East de-escalation fades – business live

## Summary
Good morning, and welcome to our rolling coverage of business, the financial markets and the world economy. Yesterday’s equity rally was driven by Donald Trump appearing to blink first in the Iranian war, by claiming “very good” talks had taken place with Tehran and postponing any attacks on Iran’s energy infrastructure for five days. Oil slumped 10%, But…that optimism may fade, as Iran dismisses Trump’s claim of talks; the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) called Trump’s words “psychological operations” that had no impact on Tehran’s fight, while parliamentary speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf said it was “fake news … used to manipulate the financial and oil markets”. The agenda 9am GMT: Eurozone flash PMI report for March 9.30am GMT: UK PMI report for March 9.30am GMT: The Science, Innovation and Technology Committee will question senior representatives of Google, TikTok, X and Meta 1.30pm: Bank of England chief economist Huw Pill speech at central banking conference in North Macedonia 2.30pm GMT: Business and Trade committee hearing on Royal Mail 2.45pm GMT: US PMI report for March

## Article Content
Good morning, and welcome to our rolling coverage of business, the financial markets and the world economy.
The dust is settling in the markets after a classic roller-coaster session yesterday, when hopes of de-escalation in the Middle East drove up shares and hit oil.
Yesterday’s equity rally was driven by Donald Trump appearing to blink first in the Iranian war, by claiming “very good” talks had taken place with Tehran and postponing any attacks on Iran’s energy infrastructure for five days.
That was enough to pull European markets out of a nosedive, while the US
Dow Jones Industrial Average
recorded its strongest daily rise in six weeks.
Oil
slumped 10%,
But…that optimism may fade, as Iran dismisses Trump’s claim of talks; the
Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC)
called Trump’s words “psychological operations” that had no impact on Tehran’s fight, while parliamentary speaker
Mohammad
Baqer
Qalibaf
said it was “fake news … used to manipulate the financial and oil markets”.
And today, oil is rising again, back over the $100 mark. Brent crude has risen by 2.5% to $102.51 a barrel, as the conflict continues.
Middle East crisis live: Iran dismisses Trump claim of talks; von der Leyen says global energy situation is ‘critical’
Read more
Although Trump’s claims have defused some tension, the underlying situation remains “incredibly fragile”, points out
Tony
Sycamore
, market analyst at
IG
:
double quotation mark
Iran initially denied any knowledge of the talks, although reports suggest the US administration may have identified a potential new negotiating partner open to a ceasefire. However, some of this optimism has been overshadowed this morning by fresh reports of US and Israeli strikes on energy-related buildings in Iran’s Isfahan region, which has seen [US] crude oil bounce 3% to $91.53.
Presumably, these latest strikes are designed to get all of Iran’s new leadership group on the same ceasefire page ahead of Trump’s revised deadline for Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, which is now set for Friday. Crucially, this deadline coincides with the expected arrival of 2,200 Marines of the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit in the Gulf Region, along with the USS Tripoli and USS New Orleans.
So far today, Asia-Pacific stock markets have risen – recovering some of their losses before Trump’s claims hit the wires. European markets are expected to drop, though, when trading begins.
New surveys of purchasing managers around the world will also show the impact of the conflict, and the surge in energy prices, on the global economy.
The agenda
9am GMT: Eurozone flash PMI report for March
9.30am GMT: UK PMI report for March
9.30am GMT: The Science, Innovation and Technology Committee will question senior representatives of Google, TikTok, X and Meta
1.30pm: Bank of England chief economist Huw Pill speech at central banking conference in North Macedonia
2.30pm GMT: Business and Trade committee hearing on Royal Mail
2.45pm GMT: US PMI report for March

---

## Expert Analysis

### Merits
- The agenda 9am GMT: Eurozone flash PMI report for March 9.30am GMT: UK PMI report for March 9.30am GMT: The Science, Innovation and Technology Committee will question senior representatives of Google, TikTok, X and Meta 1.30pm: Bank of England chief economist Huw Pill speech at central banking conference in North Macedonia 2.30pm GMT: Business and Trade committee hearing on Royal Mail 2.45pm GMT: US PMI report for March

### Areas for Consideration
N/A

### Implications
- Oil slumped 10%, But…that optimism may fade, as Iran dismisses Trump’s claim of talks; the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) called Trump’s words “psychological operations” that had no impact on Tehran’s fight, while parliamentary speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf said it was “fake news … used to manipulate the financial and oil markets”.
- Middle East crisis live: Iran dismisses Trump claim of talks; von der Leyen says global energy situation is ‘critical’ Read more Although Trump’s claims have defused some tension, the underlying situation remains “incredibly fragile”, points out Tony Sycamore , market analyst at IG : double quotation mark Iran initially denied any knowledge of the talks, although reports suggest the US administration may have identified a potential new negotiating partner open to a ceasefire.
- New surveys of purchasing managers around the world will also show the impact of the conflict, and the surge in energy prices, on the global economy.
- The agenda 9am GMT: Eurozone flash PMI report for March 9.30am GMT: UK PMI report for March 9.30am GMT: The Science, Innovation and Technology Committee will question senior representatives of Google, TikTok, X and Meta 1.30pm: Bank of England chief economist Huw Pill speech at central banking conference in North Macedonia 2.30pm GMT: Business and Trade committee hearing on Royal Mail 2.45pm GMT: US PMI report for March

### Expert Commentary
This article covers trump, iran, markets topics. Notable strengths include discussion of trump. Readability: Flesch-Kincaid grade 0.0. Word count: 484.