Global oil markets were rocked on Monday by the sharpest single-day drop in years after President Donald Trump announced he was postponing planned U.S. military strikes on Iranian power plants and energy infrastructure.
International benchmark Brent North Sea crude plunged more than 14 percent, crashing to $96.00 per barrel by midday trading in London. The U.S. benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) fell in tandem, shedding more than 14 percent to $84.37 a barrel.
The dramatic sell-off erased weeks of gains fueled by fears that the conflict—code-named Operation Epic Fury—would choke off critical oil supplies from the Persian Gulf.
In an all-caps post on his Truth Social platform early on Monday, Trump declared that Washington and Tehran had held “very good and productive conversations regarding a complete and total resolution of our hostilities in the Middle East” over the past two days.
“Based on the tenor and tone” of those talks—which he said would continue throughout the week—he had ordered the Department of War (the Pentagon’s formal designation under his administration) to “postpone any military strikes against Iranian power plants and energy infrastructure for five days, subject to the success of the ongoing meetings.”
The announcement came just hours before the expiration of a 48-hour ultimatum Trump himself had issued over the weekend, demanding that Iran immediately reopen the Strait of Hormuz or face devastating strikes on its energy heartland.
The narrow waterway, through which roughly one-fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas flows, has been effectively closed by Iranian forces since the conflict erupted, sending crude prices soaring above $126 a barrel at their peak.
Operation Epic Fury was launched on February 28, 2026, when U.S. and Israeli forces unleashed a large-scale joint offensive targeting Iranian nuclear facilities, missile bases, air defenses, and senior leadership.
Tehran responded with retaliatory missile barrages on U.S. installations in the Gulf and cities in Israel, while mining approaches to the Strait and disrupting global shipping lanes. The escalation triggered the worst energy-market volatility since the 1970s oil crisis, according to analysts.
Humanitarian costs have mounted rapidly. More than 2,000 deaths have been reported across Iran, Lebanon, and Israel, with Iranian cities reeling from power blackouts and toxic air pollution caused by strikes on industrial sites. Israel has continued ground and air operations against Iranian-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon, further inflaming the region.
Despite the reprieve, tensions remain dangerously high. Iranian officials have warned that any renewed attacks on their territory could lead to the mining of the entire Persian Gulf, a move that would paralyze global energy flows for months.
Tehran has also denied that formal negotiations are underway, with state media insisting the Strait will not return to pre-war conditions until foreign forces withdraw.
Traders and analysts reacted with cautious optimism. “This is a classic risk-off move,” said one London-based oil strategist. “The market had priced in the very real possibility of Iranian power plants going dark and the Strait staying closed indefinitely. Trump’s pause—even if only for five days—has traders scrambling to unwind those bets.”
Yet few believe the pause signals an imminent ceasefire. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office has not commented on the U.S. decision, and Israeli strikes in Lebanon continued Monday. In Washington, administration officials stressed that the five-day window is “conditional” and that all military options remain on the table if talks collapse.
For now, the world is watching and breathing a little easier at the pump. But with the clock ticking on Trump’s self-imposed deadline and Iranian missiles still pointed at key shipping lanes, the fragile calm could shatter as quickly as the oil prices fell today. The coming week, as the president himself noted, will be decisive.
WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW
U.S. President Donald Trump has ordered a five-day pause on planned strikes against Iranian power plants and energy infrastructure, following unexpectedly productive talks with Iran.
This sudden de-escalation triggered a dramatic 14%+ plunge in global oil prices (Brent to $96, WTI to $84.37), offering temporary relief to energy markets after weeks of extreme volatility caused by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
While the pause buys time for diplomacy, the underlying conflict remains unresolved, and the coming week will determine whether this reprieve holds or collapses back into escalation.
