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U.S. President Donald Trump took the froth out of rising oil markets and propped up sagging stock markets by announcing in a Truth Social post early Monday that his administration had held “PRODUCTIVE CONVERSATIONS” with Iran. The message came just two days after Trump had threatened to destroy Iran’s electricity infrastructure if it did not open the Strait of Hormuz, which it still hasn’t. 

Trump later said his Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner had talks with a senior Iranian official, though he declined to identify the individual. However, Iranian regime-affiliated news outlets cited the Ministry of Foreign Affairs denying any contacts, direct or indirect, with the United States. Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, the speaker of the Iranian parliament and the purported interlocutor of U.S. talks, also denied negotiating with Washington and said Trump’s message was aimed at manipulating markets.

U.S. President Donald Trump took the froth out of rising oil markets and propped up sagging stock markets by announcing in a Truth Social post early Monday that his administration had held “PRODUCTIVE CONVERSATIONS” with Iran. The message came just two days after Trump had threatened to destroy Iran’s electricity infrastructure if it did not open the Strait of Hormuz, which it still hasn’t. 

Trump later said his Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner had talks with a senior Iranian official, though he declined to identify the individual. However, Iranian regime-affiliated news outlets cited the Ministry of Foreign Affairs denying........

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