US open: Stocks higher as traders bet on easing US-Iran tensions

(Sharecast News) - Major indices were in the green early on Wednesday as oil prices declined amid growing optimism that the US/Israel-Iran conflict may soon draw to a close.

As of 1515 BST, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.57% at 46,603.90, while the S&P 500 advanced 0.53% to 6,563.06 and the Nasdaq Composite came out of the gate 0.86% firmer at 21,775.61.

The Dow opened 262.39 points higher on Wednesday, extending solid gains recorded in the previous session.

Stocks traded higher after Donald Trump said late on Wednesday that he expects US forces to leave Iran within "two or three weeks". Oil prices eased following the remarks, with West Texas Intermediate down 2.51% to $98.84 a barrel, while Brent crude slipped 2.76% to $101.12 a barrel.

Wednesday's early moves followed an earlier unconfirmed report that suggested Iranian president Masoud Pezeshkian was open to ending the conflict if provided with certain guarantees. Pezeshkian made similar comments earlier in the month, saying the only way to end the war was "recognising" Iran's legitimate rights, payment of reparations, and firm int'l guarantees against future aggression".

Trump later claimed Iran's leader had asked the US for a ceasefire, something Tehran has yet to publicly acknowledge or confirm after denying that it was in direct talks with Washington just last week.

In a social media post, Trump said the ceasefire would be considered "when Hormuz Strait is open, free, and clear", adding that, until then, "we are blasting Iran into oblivion or, as they say, back to the Stone Ages!!!"

Seperately, Trump told The Telegraph he was strongly considering pulling the US out of Nato after its failure to join his war on Iran. In an interview with the newspaper, he described the alliance as a "paper tiger" and said that removing America from the defence treaty was now "beyond reconsideration". NATO partners have been reluctant to help reopen the strait of Hormuz, through which 20% of the world's oil typically travels and has effectively been closed for weeks by Iran.

On the macro front, US mortgage applications fell 10.4% in the week ended 27 March, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association, extending the prior week's 10.5% decline, with the latest slump coming as benchmark mortgage rates jumped 48 basis points over the course of the month. Applications to refinance a mortgage, which are typically more sensitive to shortterm interest rate moves, tumbled 17% on the week, leaving it down roughly 40% over the month, while applications to purchase a home slipped 3%.

Elsewhere, private sector employment in the US rose more than expected in March, according to figures released on Wednesday by ADP. Employment increased by 62,000 from February, versus expectations for a 40,000 jump. Meanwhile, the February figure was revised to show that 66,000 jobs were added, up from 63,000. Small businesses with fewer than 50 employees added 85,000 jobs, while medium businesses with between 50 and 499 employees shed 20,000 jobs. Large businesses with more than 500 employees lost 4,000 jobs. The service sector added 32,000 jobs, while the goods-producing sector saw a 30,00 increase. Year-on-year pay for job-stayers stayers rose 4.5%, unchanged for the third month in a row. For job changers, pay growth accelerated to 6.6%.

On another note, US retail sales rebounded in February, according to the Census Bureau, rising 0.6% monthonmonth after a 0.1% decline in January, coming in slightly ahead of forecasts for a 0.5% increase to mark the strongest reading in seven months. Gains were broadbased, led by a 3% increase at department stores, a 2.3% rise in health and personal care retailers, and 2% uptick at clothing retailers. However, sales fell 1% month-on-month at both food and beverage stores and furniture outlets.

Moving on, the S&P Global US manufacturing PMI ticked up to 52.3 in March, a touch below the flash estimate of 52.4 but up from 51.6 in February, signalling a solid pace of expansion across the sector. Output and new orders strengthened, driven largely by domestic demand as firms built up inventories and moved to secure pricing amid the Middle East conflict. However, overseas demand remained weak, with international sales continuing to decline amid tariffs and ongoing shipping disruptions.

Still on data, the Institute for Supply Management's manufacturing PMI increased to 52.7 in March, up from 52.4 in February and above forecasts of 52.5. March's print was the strongest rate of growth in factory activity since July 2022, led by a faster increase in production, even as new orders slowed and employment contracted slightly faster. Also, the prices paid index increased from 70.5 to 78.3.

Finally, business inventories fell 0.1% month-on-month in January, according to the Census Bureau, following December's flat reading and failing to meet expectations of a 0.1% increase. On an annualised basis, business inventories advanced by 1%.

No major corporate earnings were slated for release on Wednesday.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com

Dow Jones - Risers

Intel Corp. (INTC) $46.77 11.94%

Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $732.70 3.39%

Boeing Co. (BA) $205.85 3.27%

Apple Inc. (AAPL) $254.80 2.83%

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $860.96 1.83%

Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $121.89 1.40%

Amgen Inc. (AMGN) $354.60 1.39%

Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $78.22 1.24%

3M Co. (MMM) $146.97 1.14%

Home Depot Inc. (HD) $331.90 0.95%

Dow Jones - Fallers

Nike Inc. (NKE) $45.92 -13.12%

Chevron Corp. (CVX) $199.48 -3.59%

Visa Inc. (V) $294.67 -2.19%

McDonald's Corp. (MCD) $305.47 -1.71%

Dow Chemical Co. (DOW) $41.21 -1.27%

Salesforce.Com Inc. (CRM) $184.50 -1.20%

Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $49.70 -0.90%

Travelers Company Inc. (TRV) $289.71 -0.62%

American Express Co. (AXP) $301.05 -0.54%

International Business Machines Corporation (CDI) (IBM) $241.51 -0.36%

S&P 500 - Risers

Nektar Therapeutics (NKTR) $76.88 17.03%

Western Digital Corp. (WDC) $295.66 13.37%

Intel Corp. (INTC) $46.77 11.94%

Micron Technology Inc. (MU) $355.70 11.34%

Seagate Technology Plc (STX) $416.05 10.78%

PVH Corp. (PVH) $77.39 10.67%

United Airlines Holdings Inc (UAL) $95.75 9.35%

KLA-Tencor Corp. (KLAC) $1,533.80 8.05%

Ipg Photonics Corp. (IPGP) $118.74 7.96%

Applied Materials Inc. (AMAT) $355.84 7.58%

S&P 500 - Fallers

Nike Inc. (NKE) $45.92 -13.12%

Aptiv PLC (APTV) $61.63 -10.39%

Philip Morris International Inc. (PM) $153.12 -6.92%

Apache Corp. (APA) $41.25 -5.73%

Robert Half Inc. (RHI) $24.03 -5.22%

Fidelity National Information Services Inc. (FIS) $44.70 -4.71%

Diamondback Energy Inc. (FANG) $191.45 -4.47%

Global Payments Inc. (GPN) $64.44 -4.03%

Broadridge Fin Sol (BR) $157.37 -3.95%

Charter Communications Inc. (CHTR) $210.65 -3.84%

Nasdaq 100 - Risers

Western Digital Corp. (WDC) $295.75 13.72%

Intel Corp. (INTC) $46.76 11.94%

Micron Technology Inc. (MU) $354.92 11.26%

Seagate Technology Plc (STX) $416.08 11.03%

KLA-Tencor Corp. (KLAC) $1,530.59 8.34%

Applied Materials Inc. (AMAT) $354.84 7.69%

Asml Holdings N.V. (ASML) $1,366.62 7.00%

Lam Research Corp. (LRCX) $220.46 6.92%

Microchip Technology Inc. (MCHP) $65.74 6.92%

American Airlines Group (AAL) $11.02 6.88%

Nasdaq 100 - Fallers

Charter Communications Inc. (CHTR) $210.35 -3.84%

Automatic Data Processing Inc. (ADP) $198.15 -3.71%

T-Mobile Us, Inc. (TMUS) $203.88 -3.20%

Paychex Inc. (PAYX) $90.04 -2.85%

Comcast Corp. (CMCSA) $28.00 -2.81%

Intuit Inc. (INTU) $415.81 -1.97%

Verisk Analytics Inc. (VRSK) $186.12 -1.90%

Liberty Global plc Series C (LBTYK) $11.56 -1.78%

Adobe Systems Inc. (ADBE) $237.85 -1.72%

Liberty Global plc Series A (LBTYA) $12.00 -1.40%