Trump's announcement: 'Ceasefire reached between Israel and Iran'

Trump hinted that Israel and Iran would be given some time to complete any ongoing operations, after which the ceasefire would begin in a gradual process. The latest missiles fired by Iran towards Israel left at least 3 dead and 8 wounded in Beer Sheva.

Araqchi stated that if Israel stopped its 'illegal aggression' against the Iranian people by 4am Tehran local time (00:30 GMT), Iran would lay down its arms. Since that time, no new Israeli attacks against Iran have been reported. "The final decision on the cessation of our military operations will be made later," Araqchi added in a post on X.

The ceasefire comes after an Iranian attack on a US military base in Doha, Qatar. Iran's response followed a tried and tested pattern, with Tehran carrying out a retaliation designed more to save face than to hit its adversaries with the risk of triggering an escalation that would have been catastrophic for a regime that has never been as weak as it is now.

The Iranian attack against the US base was decided after US bombers dropped 13.5 tonne anti-bunker bombs on Iranian underground nuclear sites over the weekend, joining Israel in an operation aimed at decapitating Tehran's nuclear programme.

Markets reacted positively to the news. Overnight, futures on the S&P 500 rose 0.4 per cent, confirming that traders expect a positive opening of the US stock market on Tuesday. Conversely, US crude oil futures fell in early trading in Asia on Tuesday, reaching their lowest level in more than a week, after Trump announced the ceasefire agreement, easing supply disruption fears in the region. Asian markets celebrated the ceasefire news with largely positive sessions: Tokyo closed at +1.14%, Seoul at +2.96%, Hong Kong at +2.06, Shanghai at +1.15%.