Wall St picks up steam thanks to hope for a resumption of negotiations between the United States and Iran.

The main indices on Wall Street rose on Tuesday as reports of new efforts to ease the conflict in the Middle East boosted sentiment, while traders also assessed a series of corporate earnings reports.

Delegations from the United States and Iran could resume talks in Pakistan to end the war this week, Reuters sources said. President Donald Trump also stated that Iran wanted to reach an agreement.

The market has been sensitive to developments in the region, with even small signs of a resolution encouraging investors hungry for positive news.

“The shift from conflict between the United States and Iran from missiles to words leaves markets hopeful for the beginning of the end of the war,” said Bob Savage, market macroeconomic strategy chief at BNY.

At 11:26 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose by 290.36 points, or 0.60%, to reach 38,508.61. The S&P 500 gained 60.15 points, or 0.88%, to 6,946.39, and the Nasdaq Composite surged by 326.91 points, or 1.41%, to 23,510.64.

The S&P 500 was on track to recover all its losses since the start of the war, while the Nasdaq 100 was set to register a ten-day winning streak, the longest since 2021.

However, any sign of resuming hostilities could quickly derail the rally, especially as concerns about the war’s economic impact persist.

The International Monetary Fund reduced its global growth outlook on Tuesday.

Comments from several Federal Reserve policymakers will also be closely watched throughout the day to see how the central bank assesses the impact of the war between the United States and Iran.

EARNINGS PROVIDE INSIGHTS

Apart from geopolitics, investors are relying on a series of quarterly earnings reports to position themselves.

“The earnings season will help investors transition from macroeconomics to microeconomics,” said Art Hogan, chief market strategist at B Riley Wealth.

BlackRock rose by 4.2% after the asset manager announced an increase in first-quarter profit, aided by strong inflows into its exchange-traded funds and a significant rise in performance fees.

Citigroup increased by 1.5% and reached its highest level in nearly twenty years after surpassing first-quarter profit estimates, while Johnson & Johnson rose by 1.4% after reporting its earnings.

JPMorgan declined by 0.6% after the release of its first-quarter results, while Wells Fargo fell by 4.8% as interest income fell below market expectations.

The S&P Financial index rose by 0.3%. Software sector stocks increased by 1.4%, marking their biggest two-day gain since last May.

Among other gainers, United Airlines and American Airlines rose by 4% and 8.9%, respectively.

United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby presented Mr. Trump with a potential merger with American Airlines at the end of February, according to two sources, hinting at a deal that could reshape the sector.

Globalstar’s shares surged by 10.1% after Amazon.com agreed to acquire the satellite company.

Additionally, Tuesday’s data showed that US producer prices rose less than expected in March, with service costs remaining unchanged.

There were more advancing stocks than declining stocks in a ratio of 2.61 to 1 on the NYSE and 2.4 to 1 on the Nasdaq.

The S&P 500 recorded 18 new highs in 52 weeks and one new low, while the Nasdaq Composite saw 109 new highs and 29 new lows.