European natural gas prices slide amid hopes for U.S.-Iran peace deal in General Energy News 07/05/2026 European gas prices pared back some earlier losses, but remained lower, as hopes swirled around a potential deal to end the war in Iran. By 09:09 ET (13:09 GMT), the benchmark Dutch front-month contract at the TTF hub was down by 6.7% at 43.77 euros per megawatt hour, after having slid earlier to around 41 euros per megawatt hour. Yet the TTF contract is still well above pre-war levels, due largely to the continued effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz, which has deprived Europe of crucial liquefied natural gas imports from the Gulf region. U.S. President Donald Trump has suggested that the Strait of Hormuz will be “OPEN TO ALL” should Iran agree to U.S. demands, as hopes have grown that a deal to end the Middle East conflict may be edging closer. In a social media post, Trump said that the U.S. assault on Iran, which Washington began with Israel in late February, “will be at an end” if Tehran “agrees to give what has been agreed to.” Trump did not elaborate further on what promises Iran had made, but threatened to resume bombardments “at a much higher level and intensity than it was before” should a deal fall through. He has claimed that “great progress” has been made in reaching an accord. But the president told the New York Post that it was “too soon” to start thinking about possible in-person discussions with Iran. Meanwhile, an Axios report said the White House believes that it is nearing a deal with Iran on a one-page memorandum of understanding to end the war, adding that the document would lay out a framework for more detailed nuclear negotiations. Washington expects Tehran to respond on several major points within the next 48 hours, the report said. While nothing has yet to be agreed, this was the closest both sides have come to concluding the conflict since the outbreak of the fighting in late February, Axios said. A potential deal would see Iran com