Donald Trump vows fresh Iran strikes as $500B vanishes from markets

More than $500 billion has been wiped from U.S. stock markets after President Donald Trump declared the U.S.-Iran ceasefire effectively over and warned that Washington could launch fresh military action against Iran.

According to remarks Trump made to reporters, he no longer considers the ceasefire in effect, saying, “I don’t want to have anything to do with them anymore; they’re scum.” During separate comments at the NATO Summit, Trump also said the United States would “probably” strike Iran again later that night, reigniting fears of a broader conflict across the Middle East.

Those remarks came only days after indirect talks between U.S. and Iranian negotiators, with mediation from Qatar and Pakistan in Doha, had reportedly produced positive progress. Tuesday’s statements raised doubts about whether those diplomatic gains could survive.

Markets reacted immediately. U.S. equities fell sharply, crude oil climbed, and cryptocurrencies extended losses as investors moved away from risk assets. Trump’s remarks also drew attention because he mistakenly referred to Iran as the “Islamic Republic of Japan” while describing what he said was an attack involving 11 missiles against a U.S. aircraft carrier.

Oil and equities have reacted first to renewed geopolitical fears

Energy markets recorded one of the strongest reactions. Crude oil jumped about 5%, testing resistance near $75 after traders priced in the possibility of supply disruptions. If prices establish themselves above the $72 level, technical price action suggests oil could challenge $78 in the short term.

Wall Street also turned lower. The S&P 500 fell roughly 1%, the Nasdaq 100 lost 1.5%, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 1.3%. Intraday trading pushed the S&P 500 down to around 7,429 before stabilizing slightly near 7,437.

Gold failed to benefit from the initial flight to safety, sliding about 2.5% from roughly $4,100 to $4,030.

Digital assets followed the weakness in equities. According to CoinGlass, 125,335 traders were liquidated over the past 24 hours, with total liquidations exceeding $385 million across the crypto market.

Bitcoin also extended its decline after already coming under pressure following reports that an oil tanker had been attacked in the Strait of Hormuz earlier this week. The cryptocurrency was trading near $62,200 at the time of writing after failing to reclaim resistance around $63,200, a level that coincides with the 78.6% Fibonacci retracement on the daily chart.

Technical indicators also show Bitcoin remaining below its Supertrend resistance near $65,800 while continuing to trade beneath a descending trendline, suggesting sellers still hold the advantage. If geopolitical tensions intensify further, the next major support lies near $57,900, with intermediate support around $61,500.

Trump’s warning about Iran’s infrastructure has raised supply concerns

Alongside declaring the ceasefire finished, Trump outlined what he claimed the U.S. military could do if hostilities escalate further.

“The U.S. military could destroy all of Iran’s bridges, disable its electrical grid, and destroy its desalinization plants in one day,” Trump said.

Trump additionally discussed Kharg Island, Iran’s primary oil export terminal, saying U.S. forces had struck part of the facility the previous night and suggesting they could eventually control the entire island.

Kharg Island handles most of Iran’s crude oil exports, making it one of the world’s most important energy infrastructure sites. Any prolonged disruption there could reduce global crude supplies and keep upward pressure on oil prices.

As traders continue assessing Washington’s next move, developments around Iran’s oil infrastructure are expected to remain one of the main drivers for oil, equity, and cryptocurrency markets in the coming sessions.