Trump says he's pausing Iran energy strikes for 5 days amid talks

President Trump said he suspended his plan to strike Iran's power plants, citing what he called progress in negotiations to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. Why it matters: Trump's Saturday ultimatum to launch attacks if Iran doesn't open the Strait of Hormuz within 48 hours — and the Iranian threats to retaliate against electricity infrastructure in Israel and Gulf countries —raised the potential for a dramatic escalation.The Hormuz crisis has become a key issue preventing Trump from ending the war. The exchange of threats exacerbated the crisis even more, rattling the global energy markets.U.S. stock futures, which had been falling earlier in the morning, suddenly surged on Trump's post, and oil prices fell.What he's saying: In an all caps post on Truth Social on Monday morning Trump wrote that the U.S. and Iran have had "very good and productive conversation" over the last two days that focused on ending hostilities in the region. "BASED ON THE TENOR AND TONE OF THESE IN DEPTH, DETAILED, AND CONSTRUCTIVE CONVERSATIONS, WITCH WILL CONTINUE THROUGHOUT THE WEEK, I HAVE INSTRUCTED THE DEPARTMENT OF WAR TO POSTPONE ANY AND ALL MILITARY STRIKES AGAINST IRANIAN POWER PLANTS AND ENERGY INFRASTRUCTURE FOR A FIVE DAY PERIOD, SUBJECT TO THE SUCCESS OF THE ONGOING MEETINGS AND DISCUSSIONS," Trump wrote. The other side: Iran's foreign ministry said there had been no talks between Iran and the U.S., though some countries in the region were attempting to reduce tensions. Tehran claimed Trump had backed down to avoid further energy price spikes and buy time for his military plans.