Indexes up: Dow 2.85%, S&amp;P 500 2.51%, Nasdaq 2.80%European stocks notch biggest percentage jump in a yearEnergy stocks tumble as crude prices settle below $100 a barrelFed minutes reveal openness to rate hikes due to rising inflation expectationsAirlines, cruise operators reboundBy Stephen Culp and Purvi AgarwalNEW YORK, April 8 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks closed sharply higher on Wednesday after a last-minute, two-week ceasefire agreement between the United States and Iran lifted investor sentiment. All three major U.S. stock indexes surged at the opening bell, muscled higher by a broad relief rally after a deal brokered by Pakistan resulted in a two-week suspension of the war. The conflict, which began with joint U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28, has sent world markets reeling, disrupted global oil supply and sparked fears of rising inflation.A senior Iranian official told Reuters that the crucial Strait of Hormuz, through which one-fifth of the world’s oil is shipped, could be reopened on Thursday or Friday ahead of peace talks if the countries agreed upon a framework for the ceasefire.“It’s an expected move today and there’s still a lot of work to do, but I think the market is quite relieved,” said Mike Dickson, head of portfolio management at Horizon Investments in Charlotte, North Carolina. “The other side of this coin could have been a lot worse and frankly there’s a good reason to think that it was possible too. So you’re seeing that relief rally in the hardest-hit areas of the market.”The S&amp;P 500 shot above its 200-day moving average for the first time since mid-March, while the Dow registered its largest single-session percentage gain since April 9, 2025.Economically sensitive Dow Transports (.DJT) touched an all-time high, while the Russell 2000 (.RUT) outperformed its larger-cap peers. Chips (.SOX) jumped 6.3%. The rally was not confined to U.S. indexes. European shares (.STOXX) rose 3.9%, while MSCI’s World index (.MIWD00000PUS) was up over 3%. Both indexes logged their biggest one-day percentage gains in a year.“Most other countries were more exposed to an energy shock and a food shock than the U.S.,” said Ross Mayfield, investment strategy analyst at Baird in Louisville, Kentucky. “So this is a much bigger near-term relief for international stocks.”The CBOE Market Volatility index (.VIX) , a barometer of investor anxiety, dipped to its lowest level since the beginning of the war. Front-month WTI (CLc1) and Brent (LCOc1) crude futures fell 16.4% and 13.3%, respectively, both settling below $100 per barrel.Minutes from the U.S. Federal Reserve’s March meeting, released on Wednesday, showed a growing openness to rate hikes as policymakers raised their 2026 inflation outlook due to war-related oil shock.The Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI) rose 1,326.33 points, or 2.85%, to 47,910.79, the S&amp;P 500 (.SPX) gained 165.98 points, or 2.51%, to 6,782.83 and the Nasdaq Composite (.IXIC) gained 617.15 points, or 2.80%, to 22,635.00.Of the 11 major sectors in the S&amp;P 500, eight jumped 2% or more, with industrials (.SPLRCI) leading the pack. Energy stocks, dragged down by falling crude prices, were the sole percentage losers, dropping 3.7%.Sectors that have suffered a beating since the war began enjoyed a robust bounceback. Commercial airlines (.SPCOMAIR) jumped 5.7%, travel and leisure-related stocks (.SPCOMHOTL) shot up 5.2% and homebuilders (.SPCOMHOME) rose 4.9%. Delta Air Lines (DAL.N) gained 3.8%, despite its disappointing second-quarter profit forecast. The commercial air carrier declined to update its annual outlook due to uncertainties related to the Iran war.Delta peers Southwest Airlines (LUV.N) and United Airlines (UAL.O) advanced 6.7% and 7.9%, respectively.Cruise operator Carnival (CCL.N) added 11.2% and Norwegian Cruise Line (NCLH.N) rose by 7.6%. Levi Strauss (LEVI.N) jumped 10.7% after the apparel maker raised its annual sales and profit forecasts.Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 5.67-to-1 ratio on the NYSE. There were 197 new highs and 45 new lows on the NYSE.On the Nasdaq, 3,582 stocks rose and 1,174 fell as advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 3.05-to-1 ratio.The S&amp;P 500 posted 21 new 52-week highs and 5 new lows while the Nasdaq Composite recorded 133 new highs and 57 new lows.Volume on U.S. exchanges was 20.64 billion shares, compared with the 19.42 billion average for the full session over the last 20 trading days.Iran war moves markets<figure class="image"><img src="https://pub.pbkrs.com/uploads/2026/e748c8cd7d58e11909433f12b802c0b0?x-oss-process=style/lg" alt="" width="1420" height="1138" original-src="https://pub.pbkrs.com/uploads/2026/e748c8cd7d58e11909433f12b802c0b0"/></figure>

Iran claims the foundation for negotiations has been undermined, and the Strait of Hormuz has been closed again; the White House announced that the first round of US-Iran talks will be held in Pakistan on the 11th. The situation is drawing attention. Do you think the talks can proceed smoothly?

Iran claims the foundation for negotiations has been undermined, and the Strait of Hormuz has been closed again; the White House announced that the first round of US-Iran talks will be held in Pakistan on the 11th. The situation is drawing attention. Do you think the talks can proceed smoothly?

The Hormuz National Park closes again, leaving US-Iran peace talks in limbo.

NDAQ

.SPX

- U.S. stocks surged following a ceasefire agreement between the United States and Iran, with the Dow rising 2.85%, S&P 500 up 2.51%, and Nasdaq increasing by 2.80%.  
- European stocks also posted their largest percentage gain in a year as crude prices fell below $100 a barrel, impacting energy stocks negatively.  
- Federal Reserve minutes indicated a potential shift towards interest rate hikes due to heightened inflation expectations linked to the conflict.

Reuters

Nasdaq

S&P 500

NASDAQ Composite Index

NASDAQ-100

Dow Jones Utility Average

Dow Jones Industrial Average

ProShares Ultra QQQ

Amplify Transform Data Sharing ETF

VanEck Biotech ETF

Invesco Biotechnology & Genome ETF

Proshares Big Data Refiners ETF

VG Growth

Financial Select Sector SPDR Fund

Ark Genomic Revolution ETF

Schw Us L-Cp Grw

Proshares Ultra Nasdaq Biotech

Global X Data Center & Dgtl Infrs ETF

Global X Cloud Computing ETF

Avantis U.S. Small Cap Value

VanEck Retail ETF

ProShares Ultra Dow30 ETF

iShares Core S&P 500

Pacer Data & Infrastructure Real Estate ETF

Ark Innovation ETF

VG Mga Cap 300 Grw

Direxion Semicon Bull 3X

Global X Internet

iShares Core S&P US Growth

ISHRS S&P Glb It

VG S&P 500

SPDR S&P Semicon

Guggenheim DJIA Ave Div

SPDR S&P Retail ETF

First Trust Nasdaq Cybersecurity

ISHRS Russ 2000 Val

SPDR S&P 500

Franklin Exponential Data ETF

Invesco Semiconductors ETF

ProShares Online Retail

ISHRS MSCI Eafe Growth

SPDR S&P Software

First Trust Index NextG ETF

First Trust NYSE Arca Biotech Index Fd

Invesco QQQ Trust

Pacer Cash COWZ 100-Nasdaq100RotatorETF

VanEck Semiconductor ETF

iShares US Digital Infrastructure and Real Estate ETF

ISHRS Russ 1000 Growth

SPDR S&P Biotech

VG Mid-Cap Val

Proshares UltraPro QQQ

iShares Future AI & Tech ETF

SPDR S&P 600 S-Cp Val

Amplify Online Retail ETF

Global X Robotics & Artificial

Direxion S&P Biotech Bull 3X

First Trust Cloud Computing

ISHRS Us Brokers & Sec Exchg

iShares Biotechnology ETF

iShares S&P Global Clean Energy

First Trust NASDAQ-100 Equal Weighted

Comm Servcies Select Sector SPDR

VG Value

ALPS Medical Breakthrough

Invesco Nasdaq 100 ETF

VG S-Cp Grw

iShares Semiconductor ETF

iShares Expanded Tech Software Sector ETF

iShares Dow Jones US

Pro UltrPro Dow30

SPDR Djia

Avantis US Large Cap Value ETF

Fidelity Nasdaq Composite Index ETF

Fidelity MSCI Financials Index

Global X E-commerce ETF

VG S&P M-Cap 400 Val

VG Financial

US STOCKS-Wall Street ends sharply higher on US-Iran ceasefire