Overview
- - Oil prices rose and equities fell after Wednesday night's address, with Brent topping $104 a barrel and WTI above $103 in a swift reversal of the prior day’s rally.
- - Trump said U.S. forces would hit Iran "extremely hard" for the next two to three weeks and offered no plan to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, urging other nations that rely on it to act.
- - Markets had jumped earlier on Tuesday after Trump said operations could end in "two or three weeks" and hinted at a quick exit with possible "spot hits" later, a message Tehran disputed as talks.
- - The Strait of Hormuz remains largely closed as violence spreads, with Qatar saying an oil tanker was struck by an Iranian cruise missile and Iran’s Revolutionary Guard threatening 18 U.S. companies in the region.
- - The IEA warned disruptions will intensify in April after severe damage at more than 40 energy sites, keeping fuel tight as U.S. gasoline averages top $4 a gallon and Asia faces the sharpest hit to supplies.