This is a postponement, but not a definitive ceasefire.
The price of oil falls below $100 a barrel.
Today, Monday, March 23, 2026, Donald Trump published on the Truth Social platform that the United States and Iran had “very positive and productive conversations” over the last two days aimed at resolving hostilities in the Middle East.
In this context, the American president instructed War Department to postpone for five days all planned military strikes against Iranian power plants and energy infrastructure.
I am pleased to report that the United States and Iran have had, over the past two days, very positive and productive discussions regarding the full resolution of our hostilities in the Middle East. In light of the tone of these deep, detailed, and constructive conversations, which will continue throughout the week, I have directed the War Department to postpone all military strikes against Iranian power plants and energy infrastructure for a period of five days, subject to the success of ongoing meetings and talks. Thank you for your time! President Donald J. Trump.
Donald Trump, president of the United States.
The market reaction was immediate. Bitcoin (BTC), which was trading below $69,000 during the day, regained the $70,000 level in a matter of minutes. I haven’t done it since Friday, March 20.
The following graph shows how bitcoin has moved over the last 24 hours:
Hours before the announcement, CriptoNoticias had published an analysis on the prospects for the price of bitcoin in an environment marked by three simultaneous pressures: wholesale inflation above what was expected in the United States, the Federal Reserve without room to cut rates, and the war conflict in the Middle East as the dominant risk factor.
The 48-hour deadline that Trump had set for Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz (a key maritime passage for the global oil industry) expired precisely this Monday night. That ultimatum—combined with threats from the Iranian Revolutionary Guards to attack Israeli electrical infrastructure and U.S. bases in the Gulf—kept the market in de-risking mode.
With Brent oil reaching $114 per barrel in the early hours of the session, the scenario pointed to a new escalation. The logic was the following: More expensive oil means more inflation, which means less chance of interest rate cuts, which means less liquidity for bitcoin.
Trump’s announcement reversed that chain of consequencesat least temporarily.
The reaction was not limited to bitcoin. Brent oil fell almost 12% from its highs of the day, falling from $114 to around $98 per barrel. US stock futures rose more than 2%, and the European STOXX 600 index moved from declines of more than 2% to positive territory.
Chris Beauchamp, chief market analyst at IG Markets, said: summarized precisely: “This is a postponement, not a complete ceasefire. What was done is not yet undone. But the markets are breathing a sigh of relief. And it is worth clarifying that, according to some Iranian media, has not existed dialogue with Trump.