Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange during morning trading on April 2, 2026 in New York City.
Michael M. Santiago | Getty Images
LONDON — European stocks soared Wednesday as global markets breathed a sigh of relief after the United States and Iran agreed to a conditional cease-fire deal.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 index closed 3.7% higher, with all sectors except oil and gas gaining, and all major regional stock exchanges ending in positive territory.
Travel and leisure stocks rose 7.1%, industrial stocks rose 6.6% and construction stocks rose 6.2%.
antofagasta, Lufthansa German Airlinesand easyjet were among the biggest risers, rising about 10% each.
shell was the first energy giant to report results since the outbreak of the Iran conflict, reporting a “significant increase” in oil trading profits on Wednesday.
The disruption caused by the war also affected LNG production, which fell from 948,000 barrels of oil equivalent in the fourth quarter of 2025 to between 880,000 and 920,000 barrels of oil equivalent in the first three months of 2026.
“The big jump in energy prices should boost Shell’s profits, but the company also has a large footprint in the Middle East, which has been roiled by fighting,” said Dan Coatsworth, head of markets at AJ Bell.
“This dichotomy is also reflected in Shell’s latest update, with gas production hurt by the disruption, but refining margins and oil trading revenues increasing.”
Shell’s London-listed shares closed 4.7% lower.
Global markets rallied and oil prices fell overnight after US President Donald Trump announced late Tuesday that Iran had agreed to halt plans to attack its infrastructure for two weeks.
The move is “conditional on the Islamic Republic of Iran agreeing to the full, immediate and safe opening of the Strait of Hormuz,” he wrote on Truth Social.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in a post on X on behalf of the Supreme National Security Council that Tehran’s military would “cease defensive operations.”
Asia-Pacific markets rose overnight, while US markets rose on news of the ceasefire. S&P500 It rose 2.2% in morning trading.
Oil prices also fell below $100 a barrel after President Trump threatened to order the destruction of Iran’s “entire civilization” if it did not reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
However, many Middle Eastern countries continued to report missiles and drones from Iran on Wednesday, and air defenses were activated across the Gulf.
— CNBC’s Kevin Breuninger contributed to this market report.
