Evening Briefing Europe

Trump’s Shifting Iran War Guidance Drives Market Upheaval

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US President Donald Trump speaks to the media before boarding Air Force One on March 23.

Photographer: Roberto Schmidt/Getty Images

Even by the standards of US President Donald Trump’s rapidly shifting communications, the last 24 hours have been extraordinarily chaotic.

Trump went from issuing a 48-hour ultimatum to Iran to open the Strait of Hormuz — threatening to attack the country’s power plans if it didn’t relent — to saying he had held productive talks with the leadership in Tehran that convinced him to call a five-day moratorium on such strikes.