U.S. stock market trend | Dow Jones closes up more than 1,100 points, U.S. and Iran show willingness to de-escalate the conflict

U.S. President Trump is reportedly willing to end military action against Iran if the Strait of Hormuz has not yet been reopened. Iranian President Pezeshkian has also sent ceasefire signals, stating that Tehran is willing to end the war as long as it is assured it will not be attacked again. The news has led the market to anticipate that both sides may be able to cease hostilities; oil prices have fallen from their highs, U.S. bond yields have also eased, and this has driven a significant rally in U.S. stocks on Tuesday.

Iranian President: Willing to end the war on conditional terms

After the Dow opened higher by 325 points, the gain temporarily expanded to 1,167 points, reaching a high of 46,383 points; the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq—primarily driven by technology stocks—also closed near their intraday highs, with the Nasdaq surging over 3.8%.

New York futures oil previously jumped 3.87%, to $106.86 per barrel. At the close, it fell 1.46% to $101.38; spot gold prices once increased by 3.9%, reaching $4,686.9 per ounce.

After New York futures oil rose 3.87%, it later declined

Miller Tabak chief market strategist Matt Maley admitted he was unsure why the above reports would have such a positive impact on the market. If the Strait of Hormuz shipping lane continues to be restricted as it is now, oil prices will remain high and could even climb higher.

Among individual stocks, Meta’s share price rebounded 6.7% at the close; Microsoft and Amazon both rose over 3%. Microsoft’s first-quarter decline was 23.3%, the worst quarterly performance since 2008; Tesla closed up 4.6%.

Nvidia surges over 5%, Meta up 6.7%

Nvidia rebounded 5.6%, after the company invested $2 billion in chip manufacturer Marvell and announced a business partnership, which boosted Marvell’s stock by 12.8%.

In the U.S. market close, the Dow rose 1,125 points or 2.49%, to 46,341 points; the S&P increased 2.91%, to 6,528 points; the Nasdaq jumped 3.83%, to 21,590 points. The Golden Dragon Index, reflecting the performance of China concept stocks, surged 2.8%, to 6,753 points. European stocks also gained, with the UK, France, and Germany rising 0.48%, 0.57%, and 0.52%, respectively.

Nikkei plunges 13% in March, worst since 18 years

The Iran conflict triggered a significant correction in global equities in March. Japan’s TOPIX and Nikkei indexes both fell sharply for the month—11.2% and 13.2%, respectively—marking the worst since October 2008. South Korea’s KOSPI index closed down 4.3%, retreating nearly 20% from its February high, approaching a bear market.

Several U.S. data releases showed that the Labor Department’s Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) indicated that in February, the number of job openings was revised upward from January to 7.24 million, then decreased to 6.882 million, below the expected 6.89 million, suggesting the labor market had already cooled before the outbreak of the Iran war. Meanwhile, the Conference Board’s consumer confidence index unexpectedly rose from 91 in February to 91.8, contrasting with estimates of a decline to 87.9.

U.S. bond yields decline; the U.S. dollar once fell 0.7%

Additionally, the S&P Case-Shiller home price index showed that in January, home prices in the top 20 U.S. cities increased 1.18% year-over-year, below the expected 1.38%, while nationwide home prices rose 0.91%. The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) reported that the U.S. home price index increased 0.1% month-over-month in January, in line with initial estimates.

Spot gold prices once increased 3.9%

U.S. 10-year Treasury yields fell as much as 6 basis points to 4.282%. The 2-year Treasury yield, more sensitive to interest rate changes, decreased 5.13 basis points to 3.7766%. The U.S. dollar index once declined 0.7% to 99.81, while the Japanese yen appreciated 0.67%, trading at 158.66 per dollar. Driven by rising energy prices, the euro area’s March inflation initial reading jumped from 1.9% in February to 2.5%, the highest since January 2025; the euro appreciated 0.9% to $1.1567. Cryptocurrencies, led by Bitcoin, repeatedly rose 3.9%, reaching $68,495.