Stocks Rally Toward Record Highs as Oil Falls on Iran Talks Progress

U.S. stocks pushed back toward pre-war highs Tuesday, with the S&P 500 reclaiming 6,960 as small caps led a broad-based advance. Investors cheered fresh signs of progress in U.S.-Iran negotiations, which sent crude oil tumbling nearly 7% and reshaped sector leadership across equities.

De-escalation talks lift risk appetite; oil falls sharply

President Donald Trump reinforced a de-escalation narrative in a midday interview with the New York Post, saying Iran talks “could be happening over the next two days” in Pakistan. The remarks followed Vice President JD Vance’s comments indicating “a lot of progress” in weekend talks with Iranian officials held in Islamabad.

As geopolitical risk eased, oil was the biggest casualty. WTI crude fell 6.7% to roughly $92.46 a barrel, while Brent slid 3.9% to near $95.48.

Inflation data supports the macro backdrop

Producer inflation came in sharply below expectations in March, cooling inflationary concerns and adding support to the broader market tone.

Market performance: major indexes rise

The S&P 500 rose 1.1% to 6,960, its highest level since late February, and moved closer to the 7,002-point all-time high reached in late January.

• S&P 500: 6,963.23 (+1.1%)
• Dow Jones Industrial Average: 48,564.98 (+0.7%)
• Nasdaq 100: 25,775.75 (+1.5%)
• Russell 2000: 2,707.96 (+1.4%)

Exchange-traded funds also participated in the move: the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF gained 1.1%, the SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF Trust rose 0.7%, the Invesco QQQ Trust climbed 1.5%, and the iShares Russell 2000 ETF rallied 1.4%.

Sector leadership: consumer and tech up; energy down

In sector performance, the Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR Fund led the S&P 500 sector leaderboard with a 2.3% gain, driven by travel and consumer-sensitive names. Communication Services rose 1.6% and Technology added 0.9%. The Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund fell 2.3%.

Corporate highlights: airlines surge; semiconductors hit record highs

Airlines were among the strongest performers as Hormuz risk unwound and cheaper jet-fuel tailwinds amplified deal chatter. The U.S. Global Jets ETF jumped 4.9%.

• American Airlines: +8.9% (after reports that United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby pitched a potential merger earlier this year)
• Delta Air Lines: +7.2%
• Alaska Air Group: +7.6%
• Southwest Airlines: +5.7%

In semiconductors, the iShares PHLX SOX Semiconductor Sector Index Fund rallied to record highs and posted the longest winning streak in years. Over the period referenced, chipmakers surged over 27%, the strongest rally since 2002.

Banking and mega-cap moves

Bank earnings split the tape. JPMorgan Chase trimmed its net interest income guidance, weighing on the stock, while Wells Fargo fell nearly 5% after a disappointing first-quarter print. BlackRock rose 4% and Citigroup gained 1.6% on upbeat results. Johnson & Johnson slipped 0.4% even after raising its 2026 revenue outlook.

Within the Magnificent Seven, Meta Platforms jumped 4.6%, Tesla rose 3.9%, Amazon gained 3.6% and NVIDIA added 2.7%. Apple initially slipped but recovered slightly.

Notable movers: top and bottom performers

Top performers

• Robinhood Markets, Inc.: +9.6%
• American Airlines Group Inc.: +8.9%
• Circle Internet Group, Inc.: +8.1%
• Alaska Air Group, Inc.: +7.6%
• Delta Air Lines, Inc.: +7.2%

Bottom performers

• CarMax, Inc.: -15%
• AST SpaceMobile, Inc.: -10.8%
• APA Corporation: -5.8%
• Akamai Technologies, Inc.: -5.4%
• Wells Fargo & Company: -5.2%

Energy and crypto-linked names react to the tape

Energy producers fell in line with crude’s slide, with APA down 5.8%, Occidental down 4.6% and ConocoPhillips down 4.2%. Meanwhile, crypto-adjacent names rallied: Coinbase rose 6.9% and Circle Internet Group climbed 8.1%.