Trump Signals Iran Exit, S&P 500 Heads For Worst Month Since September 2022: What's Moving The Market On Tuesday?

U.S. equities staged their strongest rally in weeks on Tuesday, as a Wall Street Journal report indicated President Donald Trump told aides he was willing to end military hostilities with Iran, even if the Strait of Hormuz remains largely closed. The remarks followed Monday’s more conciliatory message in which Trump said the U.S. was in “serious discussions with a new, and more reasonable, regime” to end military operations, threatening to obliterate Iran’s energy infrastructure if a deal was not reached. Across U.S. equity markets by midday Tuesday, gains were broad-based, with all major indices firmly in the green. The S&P 500 advanced 112 points, or 1.8%, to 6,456 — still down 6.2% for the month and roughly 8% below its January all-time high near 7,000. Yet, despite today’s rally, the S&P 500 is still on track to notch its worst monthly performance since September 2022. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 610 points, or 1.4%, to 45,826. The Nasdaq 100 rose 448 points, or 2%, to 23,401, as tech stocks led the recovery after underperforming during the selloff earlier this week. The Russell 2000 added 1.8% to 2,457. WTI crude oil — as tracked by the United States Oil Fund (NYSE:USO) — held above $104 per barrel, gaining 1.8% on the session to trade at $104.72, as supply disruptions through the Strait of Hormuz continued to dominate energy markets. Brent crude was little changed at $107.48 per barrel. Polymarket bettors see only an 18% chance that Strait of Hormuz traffic returns to normal by the end of April. Gold rebounded 2.3% to $4,618 per ounce, recovering some of its steep March losses. Yet, the metal is still down over 13% for the month, on pace for its worst month since September 2008. Silver surged 5.6% to $73.94 per ounce but remained down 17% month-to-date. On the economic data front, February JOLTS job openings fell to 6.882 million, slightly missing the 6.92 million consensus, with job quits sinking to their lowest level since August 2020. The Conference Board’s consumer confidence index for March came in at 91.8, topping the 87.9 forecast. The yield on the 10-year U.S. Treasury note fell to 4.33%, down three basis points and extending its retreat from the eight-month high of 4.44% reached two sessions ago. The two-year yield slipped to 3.81% while the 30-year eased to 4.91%. On Monday, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell reiterated that the central bank tends to look through supply shocks and that long-term inflation expectations remain anchored. Tuesday’s Performance In Major U.S. Indices IndexLast% ChangeMTDS&P 5006,456+1.8%-6.2%Dow Jones45,826+1.4%-6.3%Nasdaq 10023,401+2.0%-6.4%Russell 20002,457+1.8%-7.5%Updated by 12:30 PM ET According to the Benzinga Pro platform: The Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (NYSE:VOO) gained 1.8%. The SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF Trust (NYSE:DIA) rose 1.4%. The Invesco QQQ Trust (NASDAQ:QQQ) climbed 2.0%. The iShares Russell 2000 ETF (NYSE:IWM) advanced 1.8%. Tech Leads Broad Relief Rally The Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLK) led all sectors with a gain of roughly 2%, as battered semiconductor and software names staged a recovery. Within Magnificent Seven stocks, Meta Platforms Inc. (NASDAQ:META) surged 4.4%, while NVIDIA Corp. (NASDAQ:NVDA) gained 3.6% and Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ:MSFT) rose 1.5%. The latter is on track to end its worst quarter since the fourth quarter of 2008. The Communication Services Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLC) and the Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLY) each rose about 1%. The Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLP) and the Utilities Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLU) were the notable laggards, trading roughly flat on the session. ON Semiconductor Corp. (NASDAQ:ON) jumped 6.8% after receiving an upgrade to Buy, while Sandisk Corp. (NASDAQ:SNDK) gained 6.1% on strong AI data-center SSD demand and Monolithic Power Systems Inc. (NASDAQ:MPWR) rose 5.5%, as chip and tech names broadly benefited from the rotation back into growth. Eli Lilly and Co. (NYSE:LLY) rose 2.5% after announcing the acquisition of Centessa Pharmaceuticals PLC (NASDAQ:CNTA) for $7.8 billion, expanding its pipeline in targeted therapies. On the downside, Constellation Energy Corp. (NASDAQ:CEG) sank 7.8% after its 2026 earnings guidance came in below Street estimates despite nuclear fleet strength. McCormick & Co. Inc. (NYSE:MKC) tumbled 5.7% as an initial earnings beat was overshadowed by investor concerns over the structure of its $44.8 billion combination with Unilever’s food business. Tuesday’s Russell 1000 Top Gainers Name% changeON Semiconductor Corp.+6.79%Sandisk Corp. +6.07%Monolithic Power Systems Inc.+5.53%First Solar Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) +5.22%FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE:FDS) +4.89% Tuesday’s Russell 1000 Top Losers Name% changeConstellation Energy Corp. -7.75%McCormick & Co. Inc. -5.72%Dell Technologies Inc. (NYSE:DELL)-4.71%Biogen Inc. (NASDAQ:BIIB) -4.28%CF Industries Holdings Inc. (NYSE:CF) -3.74% Photo: Shutterstock