Oil price jumps to $117 after reports of 'extended' Iran blockade

Around two million Iranians have lost their jobs, directly or indirectly, as a result of the war, the Iranian government had said last week.

On Wednesday, Trump urged Iran to ‘get smart soon’ and sign a deal, following days of deadlock in efforts to end the conflict.

In a post on Truth Social, Trump said the country ‘couldn’t get its act together.’

The Wall Street Journal cited US officials as saying the president had instructed aides to prepare for an extended blockade of Iran’s ports in a bid to force Tehran’s hand.

Officials said Trump had opted to continue squeezing Iran’s economy and oil exports with the blockade as his other options — resuming bombing or walking away from the conflict — carried more risk, according to the report.

Iranian officials said on Tuesday the country could withstand the blockade as it was using alternative trade routes.

The World Bank on Tuesday forecast energy prices would surge by 24% in 2026 to their highest level since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine four years ago, if the most acute disruptions caused by the Iran war end in May.

European stocks fell on Wednesday, as investors digested a wave of corporate earnings and awaited the US Federal Reserve’s latest interest rate decision.