People walking along Wall Street in New York City
New York Stock Exchange opened with a cautious rise on Tuesday as investors hope for the resumption of talks between the United States and Iran. Optimism surrounding artificial intelligence (AI) and positive corporate earnings results are supporting morale.
In early trading, the Dow Jones index gained 297.23 points, or 0.60%, to 49,739.79 points, and the broader Standard & Poor’s 500 rose by 0.25% to 7,126.79 points.
The Nasdaq Composite rose by 0.29%, or 70.65 points, to 24,475.04 points.
Investors are eager to see if hopes for a lasting Middle East detente will materialize, despite uncertainty about new talks between Washington and Tehran less than 48 hours before the expiration of a two-week truce announced on April 7th.
On Tuesday, Donald Trump stated he did not want to extend the ceasefire, asserting that Washington was in a strong position in negotiations and would eventually secure a “very good deal.”
In addition to geopolitics, the market will closely watch Kevin Warsh’s confirmation hearing at the Senate for his nomination as the head of the Federal Reserve. He will speak amid inflationary concerns related to the trade war, as the White House pushes for more aggressive rate cuts.
Trump told CNBC on Tuesday that he would be disappointed if his nominee did not immediately lower interest rates upon taking office once confirmed by the Senate.
Corporate earnings and the outlook for the technology sector are also bolstering the market, with first-quarter financial results expected to be announced in the coming days.
J.P. Morgan raised its year-end target for the S&P 500, citing results driven by AI and the technology sector. Amazon announced plans to invest up to $25 billion in Anthropic, indicating tech giants are still willing to inject funds into the booming sector.
Amazon’s stock rose by 1.7% in early trading, while Apple fell by 0.81% one day after appointing John Ternus as general manager, preparing for industry transformation led by AI amid heightened competition from rivals like Nvidia and Alphabet.
Healthcare conglomerate UnitedHealth surged over 8% after raising its annual profit forecast on Tuesday, surpassing Wall Street’s expectations.
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(Reporting by Diana Mandi; Editing by Benoit Van Overstraeten)
