Oil prices dropped towards US$80 a barrel and stocks rallied on Monday after Washington and Iran reached a framework deal to end the Middle East war and reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
The Strait, through which roughly 20 per cent of the world's crude oil supply normally transits, had been effectively closed by Teheran after the US and Israeli strikes on Iran in late February, sending energy prices soaring.
The peace deal — in fact a "memorandum of understanding" — is due to be sealed with a signing ceremony in Switzerland on Friday, aimed at ending three months of conflict that have revived fears of a prolonged inflation spike.
Crude prices slumped nearly five per cent, having surged above US$110 soon after the conflict began.
Brent crude futures settled down 4.76%, to $83.17 a barrel and U.S. West Texas Intermediate settled at $80.75, down 4.87%.
Both contracts erased a chunk of the war-risk premium they had accumulated over the last few months, with Brent and U.S. crude futures closing at their lowest levels since March 4.