FTSE 100 Live: Stocks slump after markets rocked by tech-sell off; US claims ‘good foundations’ of Iran deal
Welcome back to the City AM liveblog.
Markets have shrugged off the latest developments in US-Iran peace with the FTSE 100 falling at open as London got swept up in the wider sell-off that rocked Asia and Wall Street overnight.
This comes despite some progress in the Middle East, with Trump’s Vice President JD Vance claiming talks with Iran had “laid a very good foundation for a successful final deal”.
Vance – who is leading on negotiations over the more thorny issues like Iran’s nuclear program – said further talks will continue between the US and Iran “over the weeks and days to come”.
The US on Monday also issued a general licence allowing the export of Iranian oil, fulfilling one major part of the memorandum of understanding signed by the US and Iran last week.
Oil prices moved lower on the news with Brent crude – the international benchmark for oil prices – coming under $78 per barrel on hopes of a speedier recovery in the market.
Traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has also picked up in a major to boost for markets, with producers including Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates finding alternative routes to export energy. Iran is also understood to have shipped more than 30m barrels over the past week.
But Iran’s nuclear program remains a major point of contention. Vance claimed Tehran had agreed to admit nuclear inspectors, but this was later disputed by Iranian officials.
Elsewhere, the FTSE 100 brushed off the political dramas on Monday to finish 0.7 per cent higher as Sir Keir Starmer resigned as Prime Minister.
We’ll be bringing you the latest market reaction and analysis.
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