Key insights
- President Trump indicated potential military action against Iran within days if a deal isn't reached regarding their nuclear program. This geopolitical uncertainty could trigger risk aversion, negatively impacting US equities, particularly energy and defense sectors, while potentially boosting oil prices. The short timeframe introduces heightened volatility.
WASHINGTON, May 19 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that the United States may need to hit Iran again and he was only an hour away from deciding on a strike before he postponed the attack.
"I was an hour away from making the decision to go today," Trump told reporters at the White House.
Trump said Iran’s leaders are begging to make a deal, but a new U.S. attack would happen in the coming days if a deal is not reached.
"Well, I mean, I’m saying two or three days, maybe Friday, Saturday, Sunday, something, maybe early next week, a limited period of time, because we can’t let them have a new nuclear weapon."