President Trump is defending his controversial peace deal with Iran by pointing to the positive reaction from a stakeholder he often values most: the markets.
Within seconds of signing the deal Wednesday at the Palace of Versailles, Trump said that “oil is down” and appeared to add that stocks are up, according to a video distributed by the White House.
Trump reiterated the point on Truth Social as he flew home as part of his weeklong focus on markets, writing that “the Stock Market Just Hit A RECORD HIGH, and Oil prices are ‘tumbling’ down” as he touted the deal.
And the president does have evidence to back up his point, with crude oil prices now below $80 per barrel and average US gas prices below $4 per gallon after dropping over $0.50 in the past month.
The stock market has also responded positively, with the Nasdaq (^IXIC), the S&P 500 (^GSPC), and the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) all climbing on Thursday — although not quite at the record highs Trump often claims — as the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz to commercial traffic went into effect.
But Trump’s focus on the immediate economic lift and strength seen in energy, currency, and equity markets has done little to mollify critics — many from his own party — who say problems could be looming in as soon as 60 days and argue that the president has handed the theocratic regime in Iran a strategic victory.
Sen. Bill Cassidy, a Louisiana Republican, was just one of a chorus of critics awaiting the president back in Washington, recently calling the agreement “a lousy deal.”
White House plays up strength in energy, currency, and equity markets
At a briefing on Thursday at the White House, Vice President JD Vance likewise opened on immediate-term economic benefits.
“The president’s peace plan in Iran is already bearing real fruits,” he said, saying that 12.5 million barrels of oil went through the Strait of Hormuz overnight and describing the waterway as “where it was before the conflict.”
The deal indeed appears set to usher in a new status quo in the crucial waterway, where 20% of the world’s oil flowed before the war, a status traders may be banking on could last longer than 60 days.
In a note to clients, Signum Global Advisors predicted that more conflict between the US and Iran is likely, with Iran’s nuclear program unresolved, but “given how lengthy such negotiations typically are, it is extremely likely the initial 60-day nuclear negotiation period will be extended — thereby punting confrontation.”
