Oil surges and US stock futures fall after Trump offers no clear timeline to end war in Iran
Oil surges and US stock futures fall after Trump offers no clear timeline to end war in Iran
Jake ConleyThu, April 2, 2026 at 2:13 AM UTC
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Oil prices jumped and US equity futures fell as President Trump reiterated his argument that the US is close to completing its goals in an address to the nation on Wednesday evening.
Futures on Brent crude (BZ=F), the international benchmark, reversed from multi-percentage losses to a gain of roughly 4.3%, trading above $105 per barrel after dropping below $100 earlier in the session. Those on US benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude (CL=F) reversed from earlier losses to gain roughly 3.8% and trade near $104 per barrel.
Futures on the S&P 500 (ES=F), Dow Jones Industrial Average (YM=F), and Nasdaq 100 (NQ=F) lost more than 0.8%, as of 10:15 p.m. ET.
Without laying out any truly new information in his speech, the president implied Wednesday night that the US would be escalating the conflict in an attempt to end it, noting that the US is sending Iran “back to the stone ages” in an attempt to cripple their ability to threaten global security.
Trump, who repeated the two-to-three-week timeline for US involvement that he floated to reporters on Tuesday, had been reportedly considering pulling the US military out of Iran while leaving control over the Strait of Hormuz unresolved. The president did not take a strong stance on the issue on Wednesday night.
Read more: What an extended war with Iran could mean for gas prices
WASHINGTON, DC - APRIL 1: U.S. President Donald Trump arrives to speak in the Cross Hall of the White House on April 1, 2026 in Washington, DC. Trump used the prime-time address to update the nation on the war in Iran. (Photo by Alex Brandon-Pool/Getty Images) (Pool via Getty Images)
President Trump said Wednesday night that other countries should “take the lead” in reopening the Strait of Hormuz, doubling down on the possibility that the US may aim to leave Iran with that economically vital issue unresolved.
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“We will be helpful, but they should take the lead,” Trump said of the strait, adding that other nations “must take care of that passage, they must cherish it, they must grab it,” claiming that it can be done easily.
He said the crucial 21-mile-wide waterway, a critical energy chokepoint where one-fifth of the world's oil passes, may also “open up naturally.”
The president also claimed the US is “totally independent of the Middle East” and that “We don’t need their oil," and that the US is “there to help … our allies."
While US domestic oil and gas production provides some insulation from geopolitical shocks, analysts and other oil experts have said that the US is not fully independent — especially given the international nature of oil pricing.
Jake Conley is a breaking news reporter covering US equities for Yahoo Finance. Follow him on X at @byjakeconley or email him at jake.conley@yahooinc.com.
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