Volatility reigns as Trump says Israel attacked Iran for rejecting his nuclear deal

President Donald Trump, speaking from the White House on Friday, said Iran was struck by Israel because it failed to accept the terms of a nuclear deal he personally offered them two months ago.

“Two months ago I gave Iran a 60-day ultimatum to ‘make a deal.’ They should have done it! Today is day 61,” Trump wrote on Truth, adding, “Now they have, perhaps, a second chance!”

His comments came just hours after Israeli forces launched a wave of airstrikes against Iranian targets, an operation Trump said he was briefed on before it began.

In a separate post, Trump claimed Iran was warned over and over again. “I gave Iran chance after chance to make a deal,” he wrote. “I told them, in the strongest of words, to ‘just do it,’ but no matter how hard they tried, no matter how close they got, they just couldn’t get it done.”

He then added, “Certain Iranian hardliners spoke bravely, but they didn’t know what was about to happen. They are all DEAD now, and it will only get worse!”

US says it stayed out as Iran responds with drones

Although the US military did not take part in the airstrikes, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a statement that Washington had been informed about the plans and clarified that “we are not involved in strikes against Iran and our top priority is protecting American forces in the region.”

Negotiations had been ongoing between the US and Iran in recent weeks, but the administration under Trump reportedly pushed for a direct deal rather than military escalation.

In response to the strikes, Iran launched nearly 100 drones at Israeli targets on Friday morning. An Israeli military spokesperson confirmed the wave of drones and said the country’s defense systems were intercepting them in real time.

Following the attack, a state of emergency was declared in Israel as officials prepared for more incoming threats. The situation has added even more tension to a region already worn out by the war in Gaza and clashes across the Middle East.

Trump, in a second post, emphasized the potential for more destruction. “There has already been great death and destruction, but there is still time to make this slaughter, with the next already planned attacks being even more brutal, come to an end,” he warned. “Iran must make a deal, before there is nothing left, and save what was once known as the Iranian Empire. No more death, no more destruction, JUST DO IT, BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE. God Bless You All!”

Oil and gold rally as war fears rock the market

Oil traders reacted immediately. The US West Texas Intermediate July contract surged 8.48% to $73.81 per barrel by 8:40 a.m. ET. Brent crude for August delivery rose 7.86% to $74.81.

At the same time, gold prices also rose as traders scrambled for safer places to put their money. Spot prices of gold climbed 1.3% to $3,426.31, while gold futures for August jumped to $3,445.40. US Treasury bond prices moved higher in the morning, pulling yields lower across the 30-year, 10-year, and 2-year notes.

The dollar, which had been slumping near a three-year low, bounced back sharply as the panic set in. The dollar index rose 0.5%, trading around 98.41. It also gained against typical safe havens like the Swiss franc and the Japanese yen, rising 0.33% and 0.5% respectively.

These gains show that the dollar is still king when fear kicks in, even in the face of other strong global currencies like the Swedish krona, the Swiss franc, and the Russian ruble, which are all outperforming it right now, according to data from CNBC.

The mood in Europe is grim right now. The pan-European Stoxx 600 was down 0.9% halfway through the session. Travel and leisure companies took the hardest hits, falling 2.6%. Germany’s DAX lost 1.5%, the most out of any major European index.

Individual stocks were slammed. IAG, the parent of British Airways, dropped 4.8%. Carnival, the cruise operator, lost 4.2%, while Auto1 Group, the online car sales company, fell 6%. These losses show just how quickly the market pulls out of anything tied to travel when war is on the table.

At the same time, oil shipping companies surged. Frontline, the tanker giant, was up 8.2%, leading the Stoxx 600 as investors bet on higher oil demand and tighter supply routes if the war expands.

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