U.S. stocks rose Thursday, with the S&P 500 erasing an early loss to finish up 0.6% as investors kept betting that a ceasefire in the war with Iran could hold. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 275 points, and the Nasdaq composite climbed 0.8%.
Oil was the other market’s main focus. Benchmark U.S. crude settled at $97.87 a barrel after briefly nearing $103 in the morning, while Brent crude added 1.2% to $95.92 per barrel, keeping pressure on inflation-sensitive parts of the market ahead of cpi data. The S&P 500 is still 2.2% below its record set in January.
“Oil will be here to stay for a while,” said Thierry Wizman, capturing the view on Wall Street that the latest jump in energy prices may not unwind quickly. That came after a day in which markets had surged on optimism about the ceasefire, and after Israel’s prime minister authorized direct negotiations with Lebanon on Thursday, adding another layer of uncertainty to a region already rattled by conflict.
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The moves showed up clearly in individual stocks. Constellation Brands climbed 8.5% after reporting stronger quarterly results than analysts expected, though the company pulled its financial forecasts for the following fiscal year because of limited near-term visibility and other factors. CoreWeave rose 3.5% after announcing an expanded $21 billion deal with Meta Platforms, and Meta added 2.6%. By contrast, Simply Good Foods sank 18.1% after reporting a worse drop in revenue than analysts expected, and Chief Executive Joe Scalzo called the results “unsatisfactory” while saying immediate changes were being made to turn the business around.
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The broader backdrop remains fragile. Oil prices have been swinging sharply for weeks as investors watch whether the Strait of Hormuz will fully reopen, with blockages there keeping oil and natural gas stuck in the Persian Gulf and away from customers worldwide. Brent was roughly $70 a barrel in late February, a reminder of how fast the market has moved. For now, the rally in stocks looks less like a clean break from the conflict than a pause built on hope that the worst-case scenario in energy and trade may still be avoided.
