President Donald Trump said he would extend a deadline for a deal with Iran by two weeks if the country agreed to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. He said the conditional ceasefire is intended to clear the way for negotiations to end the war.
The announcement came after Trump's Tuesday morning threats that at 8 p.m. ET, "a whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again" if the Iranian government didn't open the Strait of Hormuz.
At the 11th hour, on Tuesday, the president announced the extension and ceasefire.
"Based on conversations with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Field Marshal Asim Munir, of Pakistan, and wherein they requested that I hold off the destructive force being sent tonight to Iran, and subject to the Islamic Republic of Iran agreeing to the COMPLETE, IMMEDIATE, and SAFE OPENING of the Strait of Hormuz, I agree to suspend the bombing and attack of Iran for a period of two weeks," Trump posted on Truth Social on Tuesday evening.
In a public statement, Abbas Araghchi, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Iran, said, "For a period of two weeks, safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz will be possible via coordination with Iran's Armed Forces with due consideration of technical limitations."
The Dow began trending upward shortly before news of the ceasefire broke, as investors showed optimism about a last-minute deal. In the moments after Trump's announcement, it shot several hundred points upward.
Oil prices dropped on the news of the ceasefire. West Texas Intermediate fell over 12% as of 7 p.m. ET.
The Strait controls about 20% of the world's total oil supply, and Iran's blockade has sent the national average oil price per gallon at the pump past $4 as of April 7, according to the AAA.
Leaders of other countries have been making efforts to broker peace in the region. On Tuesday afternoon, Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif asked Trump for a two-week extension of his threat and also asked Iran's leaders to agree to open up the strait for two weeks "as a goodwill gesture."
On Monday, Trump responded a 10-point proposal from Tehran, calling it "significant" but "not good enough" during a press conference.
"We received a 10 point proposal from Iran, and believe it is a workable basis on which to negotiate," Trump said Tuesday night in his Truth Social post. "Almost all of the various points of past contention have been agreed to between the United States and Iran, but a two week period will allow the Agreement to be finalized and consummated."
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement to Business Insider that Trump's words "speak for themselves" and the 10-point proposal is a "basis to negotiate" as talks continue.
This story is developing. Check back for updates.
