Dhaka, April 8 -- Oil prices dived, stocks surged and the dollar was knocked back on Wednesday as a two-week Middle East ceasefire sparked a relief rally, fuelled by hopes that oil and gas flows through the Strait of Hormuz could resume.

The news capped weeks of financial market volatility and geopolitical upheaval after US and Israeli strikes on Iran late February pushed tensions to the brink, with Tehran effectively choking off the strategic waterway that carries about 20 per cent of the world's oil and gas, reports Reuters.

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday agreed to a ceasefire with Iran, less than two hours before his deadline for Tehran to reopen the strait or face devastating attacks on its civilian infrastructure.

Market rea...