President Donald Trump ruled out an immediate U.S. attack on Iran, easing some concerns over near-term escalation as oil prices fell.
Trump Rules Out Iran Strike as Oil Prices Retreat
Asked whether the U.S. would strike Iran on Sunday, Trump told reporters outside the White House, “The answer is no,” adding, “There will not be a strike today.”
U.S. stock futures were mixed late Sunday. Dow futures rose 128.00 points, or 0.24%, to 52,522.00, while S&P 500 futures gained 8.50 points, or 0.11%, to 7,668.25 and Nasdaq futures slipped 26.00 points, or 0.09%, to 29,091.75 as of around 10:28 p.m. EDT.
In commodities, WTI crude oil fell 2.06% to $101.14 per barrel, while Brent crude declined 1.80% to $114.62 per barrel. Natural gas futures dropped 3.94% to $2.536 per MMBtu.
Meanwhile, the U.S. dollar index fell 0.15% to 101.595 as of 8:10 a.m. GMT+5:30. In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei 225 and South Korea’s KOSPI stood at 62,365.98 and 5,476.85, respectively, as of around 11:19 a.m. GMT+9.
Pentagon Prepares Iran Strike Options After Midterms
Earlier in the week, U.S. Central Command reportedly prepared options for follow-up strikes and presented several possibilities to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.
“We may do another little epic fury,” Trump said Friday at a rally in Fort Myers, Florida.
Previously, Trump also said the U.S. was not negotiating with Iran and suggested the conflict could end soon. Meanwhile, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Tehran was open to renewed talks.
US Embassies Tighten Security Amid Iran Threat Warnings
On Saturday, it was also reported that U.S. diplomatic missions across the Middle East tightened staffing and security measures after U.S. intelligence warned that Iranian plots targeting Americans had reached “advanced stages.”
Director of National Intelligence Jay Clayton reportedly said intelligence agencies had detected increased Iranian efforts targeting U.S. personnel, with potential threats also involving certain other countries.
Meanwhile, Qatari mediators are in Tehran as part of a U.S.-coordinated initiative to ease rising regional tensions, Al Jazeera reported.
Sheikha Alanoud Hamad Saud Al Thani, a fellow at the Middle East Council on Global Affairs, described the visit as “a routine exchange.”
Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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