Stocks Climb and Oil Falls on US-Iran Peace Hopes: Markets Wrap
(Bloomberg) — A record-breaking run drove stocks toward their longest weekly rally since 2024 amid hopes for a deal to end the Iran war that has rattled financial markets and jeopardized the economic outlook.
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Friday’s advance in the S&P 500 left the gauge on track for a fifth straight week of gains. Apple Inc. climbed on a solid outlook. US crude dropped to around $102 on reports Iran delivered a new proposal to the US amid efforts to turn a fragile ceasefire into lasting peace.
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi briefed regional counterparts on the “latest positions and initiatives aimed at ending the war,” state-run Islamic Republic News Agency reported.
The fate of the Strait of Hormuz — through which about a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas flowed before the war — lies at the heart of the stalemate. Both Washington and the Tehran have signaled they are waiting for the other to move first before they agree to ease restrictions on traffic.
“On US-Iran, put simply, any ceasefire agreement will be a market positive while any resumption of attacks would be a substantial negative,” said Tom Essaye at The Sevens Report.
Traders also weighed the latest economic data, with this year’s US manufacturing expansion extending into April even as the war drove input prices sharply higher.
Meantime, three Federal Reserve officials said they dissented over this week’s policy statement because it was no longer appropriate to signal the next move was still likely to be a rate cut.
“The FOMC should offer a policy outlook that signals that the next rate change could be either a cut or a hike,” Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari wrote. Cleveland Fed President Beth Hammack said rising oil add to price pressures. Her Dallas counterpart Lorie Logan expressed concern over how long it will take to return inflation to the target.
Wall Street has brushed off worries about the potential economic fallout from the war, with signs of corporate resilience fueling a rally that drove stocks to their best month since 2020. About 81% of the S&P 500’s companies have beaten first-quarter earnings estimates, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
“Both results and forward guidance have been good,” said Ulrike Hoffmann-Burchardi at UBS Chief Investment Office. “Tech is leading the way, but earnings growth is broadening, supported by resilient consumer spending and signs of a cyclical upswing.”
Corporate Highlights:
Exxon Mobil Corp. and Chevron Corp. posted stronger-than-expected earnings as higher oil and natural gas prices outweighed production outages from the Iran war. Roblox Corp. sank after the video-game company reported fewer daily users in the first quarter than analysts expected, due to safety features it implemented to restrict how kids can use the platform. Reddit Inc. climbed after projecting sales in the current period that surpassed estimates, continuing a streak of strong revenue growth powered by the company’s surging advertising business. Estée Lauder Cos. plans to cut as many as 3,000 more jobs and generate a further $200 million of savings to help boost its turnaround plan. Moderna Inc.’s first-quarter sales beat expectations, as the struggling vaccine maker that’s faced resistance from the Trump administration has found new growth outside the US. Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
The S&P 500 rose 0.5% as of 11:03 a.m. New York time The Nasdaq 100 rose 0.8% The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.2% Currencies
The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index fell 0.2% The euro rose 0.3% to $1.1767 The British pound rose 0.1% to $1.3623 The Japanese yen was little changed at 156.67 per dollar Cryptocurrencies
Bitcoin rose 2.4% to $78,266.9 Ether rose 1.8% to $2,305.02 Bonds
The yield on 10-year Treasuries was little changed at 4.37% Germany’s 10-year yield declined seven basis points to 3.04% Britain’s 10-year yield declined five basis points to 4.96% Commodities
West Texas Intermediate crude fell 3% to $101.96 a barrel Spot gold rose 0.2% to $4,627.17 an ounce ©2026 Bloomberg L.P.
