- 'Non-hostile vessels' in Hormuz? -

Iran has said "non-hostile vessels" can transit the Strait of Hormuz if they meet safety and security regulations in coordination with the relevant authorities, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) said Tuesday.

In a statement, Iran insisted that "vessels, equipment and any assets belonging to the aggressor parties -- namely the United States and the Israeli regime -- as well as other participants in the aggression do not qualify for innocent or non-hostile passage".

- Oil drops -

Crude oil prices tumbled in Wednesday trading on hopes of de-escalation after US President Donald Trump voiced optimism about ending the nearly month-old war and Iran indicated ships from countries not party to the conflict could pass through the Strait of Hormuz.

After rising on Tuesday, Brent crude was down 6.0 percent at $94.24 a barrel and West Texas Intermediate was down 5.9 percent at $86.92.

The closure of the Strait of Hormuz in the Gulf has roiled energy and financial markets, with oil prices up around 40 percent since the start of the fighting.

- WTO sounds fertiliser warning -

Disruptions to fertiliser supplies caused by the Middle East war pose a double threat to global food security through scarcity and high prices, a top World Trade Organization official warned.

Iran has virtually shut the Strait of Hormuz, choking a vital transit route for oil and gas -- as well as fertilisers.

A third of the world's fertilisers normally transit the strait, and the disruption has prompted multiple warnings about the impact on food production.

- IEA ready for another oil stocks release -

The head of the International Energy Agency said Wednesday he was "ready to move forward" with an additional release of oil reserves "if and when necessary".

Fatih Birol's comments in Tokyo came after Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi asked the agency "to prepare to implement an additional release in case the situation drags on" with the war in the Middle East.

- Vietnam lowers prices after diesel doubles -

Vietnam adjusted its fuel prices for a second time on Wednesday, bringing down costs after the price of diesel was more than doubled since the start of the war in the Middle East, trade ministry figures showed.

Earlier Wednesday, diesel prices had skyrocketed about 105 percent from February 26, two days before the US and Israel launched strikes on Iran.

The government raised the price to 39,660 dong ($1.50) per litre as of midnight on Wednesday, up from 19,270 dong last month, according to trade ministry figures.

The price of 95-octane petrol was also raised nearly 68 percent over the same period.

But, 14 hours later, the ministry revised down fuel prices, with the cost of diesel lowered to a rate that is just below double that of the February 26 price.

- Fire at Kuwait airport after drones hit fuel tank -

Drones hit a fuel tank and sparked a fire at Kuwait International Airport, the Gulf state's civil aviation authority said on Wednesday, as Iran presses on with its attacks in the nearly four-week regional war.

Citing preliminary information, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation said in a statement posted online that the attack had caused only "limited" damage and no casualties.

-'Paralysed' -

The European Central Bank has several options for dealing with the Middle East war energy shock, its chief Christine Lagarde said Wednesday, vowing policymakers would not be "paralysed by hesitation".

Saying the world was facing "profound uncertainty", Lagarde insisted the ECB was well positioned to deal with the turmoil, with "a graduated set of options for responding".

She stressed that policymakers "will not act before we have sufficient information on the size and persistence of the shock."

The ECB faced fierce criticism for failing to hike borrowing costs quickly enough to tame runaway price rises that followed Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

- German business morale falls -

German business morale fell in March due to the fallout from the war in the Middle East, a survey showed Wednesday, as the conflict roils energy and financial markets.

The Ifo institute confidence barometer dropped from 88.4 in February to 86.4 in March as the energy price surge raises fears of higher inflation in Europe's biggest economy.

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