Trump warns Iran to "never, ever threaten the US" or suffer consequences

The tweet, written all in capital letters, came after a speech on Sunday from the Iranian president Hassan Rouhani in which he warned the US against pursuing a hostile policy against the Islamic Republic, saying that “war with Iran is the mother of all wars”. He also addressed Trump directly and told him not to “play with the lion’ tail”.

In response, Trump tweeted: "NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS!"

The comments from the Iranian president came as US secretary of state Mike Pompeo, in a speech at the Ronald Reagan presidential library and museum in California, called Iran’s ruling elite a "mafia" that allows people to suffer as long as their wealth grows. He also called the country’s religious leaders "hypocritical holy men".

Tensions between both countries have been escalating since the US withdrew from the 2015 international deal designed to curb Iran’s nuclear programme for a time. In addition, the US government recently launched an offensive of speeches and online communications meant to foment unrest and pressure Iran to drop its nuclear programme.

The US is also set to impose sanctions on Iran after withdrawing from the deal. The US Treasury has said that there will be wind-down periods of 90 and 180 days before they are implemented.

The first deadline, on 6 August, will affect the purchase of US dollars, trade in gold and certain other metals, as well as aviation and the car industry. On 4 November, other sanctions targeting Iran's financial and oil firms will kick-in.

Regarding the effect the comments may have had on the markets, Spreadex analyst Conor Campbell said: "It's a sign of how routine these bellicose outbursts have become that the markets managed to somewhat limit their losses after the bell. The FTSE dropped around 50 points as the week got underway, its commodity stocks broadly in the red as the UK index fell back towards 7625. The DAX, meanwhile, slipped half a percent to teeter just above 12500, with the CAC sliding 0.6% to duck under 5400."