GLOBAL MARKETS-Stocks gain, oil prices ease on guarded hope for possible Iran war ceasefire

By Chibuike Oguh and Elizabeth Howcroft

NEW YORK/LONDON, March 25 (Reuters) - Global equity markets rose while oil prices fell on Wednesday, as traders welcomed news of discussions to de-escalate the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.

The U.S. sent a 15-point ceasefire proposal to Iran reportedly delivered via Pakistan that was originally brushed aside by Iranian officials. But an Iranian official told Reuters that the country is still reviewing the offer, suggesting Tehran had not rejected the idea outright.

Markets have been whipsawed by the unclear signals sent by the White House in recent days, with President Donald Trump making overtures towards de-escalation even as the U.S. sends thousands of additional troops to the Middle East. Investors are hoping for an end to a war that has disrupted global energy supplies and risks fuelling inflation.

Oil prices, which have risen sharply since the joint U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran, eased slightly. Brent crude futures LCOc1 pared some earlier losses, but were still down 2.35% at $102.03 a barrel while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures CLc1 fell 2.4% to $90.10 a barrel.

"The faster we get a resolution the better," said Mark Hackett, chief market strategist at Nationwide Financial in Philadelphia. "That said, there is some negotiating in public involved, and the market is susceptible to whipsaws around the news cycle."

On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI rose 0.8%, the S&P 500 .SPX rose 0.7% and the Nasdaq Composite .IXIC rose 0.9%.

In Europe, the STOXX 600 .STOXX index and London's FTSE 100 .FTSE both rose 1.42%.

"The mood is on the positive side," said Amelie Derambure, senior multi-asset manager at Amundi. "(The) market is trading now the idea that peace talks or a ceasefire could be on the way."

Derambure said traders were positioning themselves to avoid missing a possible "relief rally," when markets rise on positive news, although she added that more convincing news will be needed for the move to be sustained.

MSCI's gauge of stocks across the globe .MIWD00000PUS rose 0.9%.

Overnight, MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan .MIAPJ0000PUS closed up 1.8%.

BOND YIELDS FALL

Iran has said that "non-hostile vessels" may cross the Strait of Hormuz if they coordinate with Iranian authorities, but the waterway, which typically carries about one-fifth of the world's gas and crude supply, remains effectively closed.

U.S. bond yields were lower across the board. The yield on benchmark U.S. 10-year notes US10YT=RR fell 7 basis points to 4.32%.

European government bond yields also fell, led by Italian bonds, which have been particularly hard-hit since the war started due to Italy's dependence on fossil fuel imports.

The benchmark 10-year German yield fell 5.1 basis points to 2.96% DE10YT=RR.

The U.S. dollar gained against its peers including the Japanese yen, Swiss franc and the euro.

The euro fell 0.2% to $1.1579 EUR=. The Japanese yen JPY= weakened 0.3% against the greenback to 159.26 per dollar. The Swiss franc CHF= was down 0.3% to 0.791 against the dollar.

The dollar index =USD, which measures the greenback against a basket of currencies including the yen and the euro, rose 0.3% to 99.49.

Spot gold prices XAU= rose 1.8% to $4,554.85 an ounce.