Oil falls below $85 dollars anticipating the reopening of Hormuz
After more than 107 days of conflict, the US and Iran have reached an agreement to end hostilities, which will lead to the long-awaited opening of the Strait of Hormuz. This was announced yesterday by US President Donald Trump, confirming that the enclave, of utmost importance for maritime oil traffic, will be reopened after the signing of the peace agreement with Iran, scheduled in Switzerland for this coming Friday, June 19.
Amid the euphoria over Trump's announcement, the Ibex 35 exceeded 19,000 points at the opening of the stock session, something it had never done in its history, recording a rise of 1.84%. Thus, the Spanish index continues its streak of gains, reaching historic levels, this latest one a round number.
Although most of 2026 has unfolded under the influence of the war in the Middle East, which has subjected global quotations to enormous volatility, the Ibex 35 reaches the halfway point of the year with a gain of over 7%.
In other news, the oil markets, immensely strained since the start of the conflict, have reacted with euphoria to the US president's announcement. In its Brent quotation, crude oil falls to $83.62, while in its West Texas Intermediate (WTI) version, the benchmark in the US, it fell to $80. With these figures, both lose more than 4% of their stock market value.
The path of oil
Brent crude reached its peak at the end of April, when it traded around $118. The prolonged closure of the Strait of Hormuz, through which 20 million barrels of oil passed daily, or one fifth of global trade, had caused extraordinary volatility in oil and gas prices, also affecting energy prices.
"The market will now demand proof of everything, from Iran's signing of the agreement to the free movement of ships through the strait, as well as whether Iran finally accepts nuclear limitations. In other words, the war premium is no longer the base case, but the caution premium remains in effect until it is verified that the agreements are being fulfilled," maintains Manuel Pinto, analyst at XTB.
Leaders celebrate the decision
"With the opening of the strait after the signing of the agreement on Friday, in order to remove the mines, oil will flow again through both ends for the region and for the world!" highlighted the White House occupant in a message published on his social network.
Regarding the aforementioned agreement, the Republican magnate predicted that it will bring "peace and security to the entire region," after which he boasted of being the US president who "for the first time" has been able to "help" the Middle East "achieve true peace."
For their part, the governments of France, the United Kingdom, Germany and Italy celebrated this Sunday "with great satisfaction" the announcement of the "memorandum of understanding" between the United States and Iran, while describing as "urgent" the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz with "unconditional" freedom of navigation and "without restrictions."
"We warmly welcome the announcement of the memorandum of understanding between the United States and Iran. We congratulate the United States, the Iranian government and all parties involved, including Pakistan, Qatar and the other mediators, for this diplomatic breakthrough," the leaders of those four countries indicated in a joint statement in which they described the "urgent reopening of the Strait of Hormuz with unconditional and unrestricted freedom of navigation" as "essential."
