A commercial ship is viewed anchored off the coast of the United Arab Emirates, in the Strait of Hormuz, Dubai, on 2 March 2026. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said on Friday the Strait of Hormuz would remain open to commercial vessels during the ceasefire period.

• Abbas Araqchi said the Strait of Hormuz is open to all commercial vessels during the 10-day ceasefire.
• Donald Trump said a deal to end the Iran war could come “soon”, though timing remains uncertain.
• The reopening eased market fears, with oil prices dropping after earlier disruptions caused by the conflict.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said the Strait of Hormuz was open following a ceasefire accord agreed in Lebanon, while ‌US President Donald Trump said he believed a deal to end the Iran war would come “soon”, although the timing remains unclear.

Araqchi said ‌in a post on X that the Strait was open for all commercial vessels for the remainder of the US-brokered 10-day truce between Israeli forces and Iran-backed Hezbollah, which was agreed between Israel and Lebanon.

ROLLING COVERAGE | Iran’s foreign minister says Hormuz Strait remains open during ceasefire

He said the ‌passage of ⁠ships would need to be along the route that Iran’s Ports and Maritime Organisation had announced.

His statement stated: “In line with the ceasefire in Lebanon, the passage for all commercial vessels through [the] Strait of Hormuz is declared completely open for the remaining period of ceasefire, on the coordinated route as already announced by Ports and Maritime Organisation of the Islamic Rep. of Iran.”

The US-Israeli attack on Iran, which started on 28 February, has killed thousands of people and destabilised the Middle East. The conflict also effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas transits, threatening the worst oil shock ⁠in history.

Oil prices fell by about 9%, extending earlier losses, following Araqchi’s post.

The International Monetary Fund this week lowered its forecasts for global growth and warned the global economy risked tipping ⁠into recession if the conflict was prolonged.

Trump had said on Thursday that talks could happen as soon as this weekend, although that was looking increasingly unlikely by Friday ⁠afternoon, given the logistics of assembling officials in the Pakistani ‌capital, Islamabad, where ‌the talks are expected to take place.