Stocks to dip amid Trump’s Hormuz blockade

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Markets are returning from the weekend to a major blow in hopes of a ceasefire in the Middle East.

After Donald Trump revealed his two-week reprieve on strikes whilst negotiations begin, those very talks now look to be hanging by a thread.

Vice President JD Vance left Islamabad on Sunday morning after 21 hours of talks with Iranian officials in the Pakistani capital.

The Veep blamed the breakdown in negotiations on the Iranian regimes refusal to ditch its nuclear weapons programme.

Another round of Truth Social posts from Trump has also helped re-esacalete, with the President warning the US military was “locked and loaded” and prepared to resume attacks against Iran at an “appropriate moment”.

Trump has also said the American navy would “immediately” begin a blockade in the Strait of Hormuz in a bid to eliminate Iran’s key source of leverage in negotiations.

This move could send further ripples across global energy markets after weeks of chaos in oil and gas prices.

The President also said that other nations would be involved in the blockade, though he did not name them.

The UK is not expected to be a part of this, however, with a government spokesperson issuing a statement reading: “We continue to support freedom of navigation and the opening of the Strait of Hormuz, which is urgently needed to support the global economy and the cost of living back home.

“The Strait of Hormuz must not be subject to tolling.”

We’ll continue to bring you the latest on this and more.

Here’s a few of our top headlines from the weekend