BRUSSELS/FRANKFURT/PARIS (dpa-AFX) - European stocks may tumble at open on Thursday after U.S. President Donald Trump did not give a clear timeline for ending the Middle East conflict in his highly anticipated prime-time address to the nation.
Instead, Trump said the U.S. military goals were 'nearing completion,' and that Iran would be hit 'extremely hard over the next two to three weeks,' damping hopes for a swift resolution to the conflict and sending oil prices soaring.
Trump claimed the drawbacks were short-term, and urged Americans to see the conflict as an 'investment'.
Asian markets reversed course to edge lower, the dollar advanced, bond yields surged and oil prices jumped more than 6 percent amid continued disruptions in operations at the Strait of Hormuz. Gold prices were down nearly 2 percent at $4,669 per ounce.
There are growing fears that jet fuel supplies could be disrupted during the summer months if the war in Iran continues throughout April and beyond.
Iran has launched three barrages of missiles toward northern Israel since early today following Trump's televised address from the White House. Amazon's cloud business in Bahrain was damaged on Wednesday due to an Iranian strike, according to the Financial Times.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has penned an open letter to the people of the United States, asserting that Iran harbors 'no enmity' toward ordinary Americans and warning that continued confrontation between the two countries is 'more costly and futile than ever before.'
Overnight, U.S. stocks ended mostly higher to extend the previous session's rally on optimism that the Iran war may end soon.
President Trump claimed on Wednesday that Iran's 'New Regime President' had asked Washington for a ceasefire and the U.S. would consider the offer once the Strait of Hormuz open is 'open, free, and clear.'
'Until then, we are blasting Iran into oblivion or, as they say, back to the Stone Ages, where they belong!!' Trump said.
The latest remarks came after Iran's Revolutionary Guard warned a number of U.S. tech companies with Middle East operations that they'll be considered 'legitimate targets.'
Meanwhile, Tehran said Trump's statement on requesting a ceasefire was false and baseless.
On the data front, U.S. retail sales increased by the most in seven months in February, while private sector employment increased by 62000 jobs in March with annual pay rising 4.5 percent year-over-year, separate reports showed.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite gained 1.2 percent, the S&P 500 added 0.7 percent and the Dow rose half a percent.
European stocks closed on a buoyant note on Wednesday as investors reacted to Trump's mixed messages on ending the war with Iran, regional PMI data and a slew of corporate updates.
The pan-European Stoxx Europe 600 index soared 2.5 percent after Trump said the previous day that the war may be over in 2-3 weeks sans a deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
The German DAX rallied 2.7 percent, France's CAC 40 surged 2.1 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 climbed 1.9 percent.
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