Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) at the opening bell in New York, on April 20, 2026.
Timothy A. Clary | AFP | Getty Images
Stocks rose on Wednesday after President Donald Trump extended the U.S. ceasefire with Iran, while upbeat earnings reports also lifted sentiment.
The S&P 500 added 0.7%, while the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.8%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 385 points, or 0.8%.
Shortly after Tuesday’s close, Trump extended a two-week U.S. ceasefire, saying it was warranted due to Tehran’s “seriously fractured” government.
“Based on the fact that the Government of Iran is seriously fractured, not unexpectedly so and, upon the request of Field Marshal Asim Munir, and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, of Pakistan, we have been asked to hold our Attack on the Country of Iran until such time as their leaders and representatives can come up with a unified proposal,” the president said in a Truth Social post.
“I have therefore directed our Military to continue the Blockade and, in all other respects, remain ready and able, and will therefore extend the Ceasefire until such time as their proposal is submitted, and discussions are concluded, one way or the other,” he added.
But the timeline remains dicey, after a lack of commitment from Tehran reportedly resulted in a pause in Vice President JD Vance’s trip to join peace talks. Iranian state media also reported that negotiators from Tehran said they wouldn’t appear as talks with the U.S. were a “waste of time.”
Even after Trump extended the ceasefire, Iran’s navy said Wednesday that it had seized two container ships in the Strait of Hormuz as tensions persist in the key waterway.
Aside from the ceasefire announcement, sentiment has been supported by a strong start to earnings season. On Wednesday, Boeing shares rose more than 4% after the company reported a smaller-than-expected loss for the first quarter. GE Vernova shares jumped 10% after the company’s first-quarter revenue topped expectations. The two are among the more than 80% of S&P 500 companies that have reported so far that have surpassed expectations, according to FactSet data.
Last week, the S&P 500 erased all of its losses since the beginning of the war as hopes of de-escalation rose.
Despite ongoing geopolitical uncertainty, Stephanie Aliaga, global market strategist at JPMorgan Asset Management, expects the rally to continue, buoyed by the AI boom and rising productivity.
“We’re clearly not in the coast is clear when it comes to this conflict in the Middle East, but markets are forward looking, and the reality is we are still on a de-escalatory path,” Aliaga said on CNBC’s “Closing Bell: Overtime.” “We don’t know the details and the timing exactly yet — and I think that remains a risk for markets, especially a market that had so swiftly moved to price in essentially, coast is clear. So there is some choppiness. But ultimately these are bumps along the road to a market that is on an upward trajectory.”