Markets surge worldwide as oil plunges toward $90 following ceasefire between US, Israel and Iran

[AP Photo]

Stock markets are surging worldwide, and oil prices are plunging back toward $90 per barrel after President Donald Trump pulled back from his threat to force a “whole civilization” to die in the war with Iran.

The S&P 500 leaped 2.6% after Trump, Iran and Israel agreed to a two-week ceasefire, just hours before a deadline Trump had set for Iran to open the Strait of Hormuz and allow oil to flow freely again from the Persian Gulf to customers worldwide.

The average price for a gallon of regular gasoline has already topped $4.16 in the United States, according to AAA. That’s up from less than $3 a couple days before the United States and Israel launched attacks to begin the war in late February.

In Asia, where countries are more reliant on oil from the Middle East, South Korea’s Kospi stock index surged 6.9%. Japan’s Nikkei 225 leaped 5.4%, and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng jumped 3.1%.

In the bond market, Treasury yields eased as worries about high inflation and oil prices ebbed.