U.S. stocks ended higher Thursday after starting with moderate losses, as traders weighed ceasefire optimism against lingering concerns tied to energy markets. The market’s bounce came a day after stocks had surged on hope for a ceasefire in the war with Iran, and it played out even as oil prices, though still up on the day, pared earlier gains.
The S&P 500 snapped back from its dip and closed 0.6% higher at 6,824.66. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose by 275.88 points, or 0.6%, to finish at 48,185.80, while the Nasdaq composite gained 187.42 points, or 0.8%, to end at 22,822.42.
A key factor cited in the session’s turnaround was developments around Israel and Lebanon. The S&P 500’s late rally accelerated after Israel’s prime minister authorized direct negotiations with Lebanon, which helped ease worries that a two-week ceasefire announced late Tuesday might already be in trouble after Israel’s bombardment of Lebanon.
Even with stocks climbing, oil remained a central source of uncertainty for investors. Crude prices trimmed gains but stayed higher for the day because traders were still focused on when oil tankers could start moving fully through the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow waterway that has been central to President Donald Trump’s demands of Iran.
Benchmark U.S. crude rose 3.7% to settle at $97.87 after briefly nearing $103 earlier in the day. Brent crude, the international benchmark, gained 1.2% to $95.92 per barrel, with the broader backdrop of sharp swings over recent weeks tied to hopes and setbacks over Strait of Hormuz access.
The market also reflected mixed signals from U.S. economic reports and shifting expectations for interest-rate policy. One report cited by the market described an underlying inflation measure that was slightly hotter in February than economists expected, while another reported that more U.S. workers applied for unemployment benefits than analysts had expected. Treasury yields moved up and down in response to those releases before ending near where they were late Wednesday, with the 10-year Treasury yield edging down to 4.28% from 4.29%.
Wall Street also focused on what higher oil prices could mean for inflation and Federal Reserve rate cuts. The report said if oil prices stay high, the Federal Reserve would face a tougher time resuming cuts to interest rates even if the job market weakens, and it pointed to minutes from the Fed’s latest meeting as showing an increasing number of officials considering the possibility of a rate hike.
Company-specific news added to the day’s stock-level swings. Constellation Brands rose 8.5% after reporting stronger results than analysts expected for its latest quarter, but it pulled its forecasts for the following fiscal year, citing limited near-term visibility. CoreWeave climbed 3.5% after announcing an expanded $21 billion deal with Meta Platforms to provide AI cloud capacity through December 2032, while Simply Good Foods fell 18.1% after reporting a bigger-than-expected decline in revenue and saying it was making immediate changes to improve results.
In foreign markets, South Korea’s Kospi fell 1.6% and Germany’s DAX declined 1.1% as equities elsewhere tracked a cautious tone around the ceasefire’s durability.