The New York stock market opened higher after U.S. President Donald Trump said he would temporarily hold off on attacking key facilities in Iran. The move appears to reflect expectations that international tensions from the Middle East could ease.
As of 10:46 a.m. on the 23rd (local time) at the New York Stock Exchange, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 930.8 points, or 2.04%, at 46,508.27. The Standard & Poor's (S&P) 500 rose 123.27 points, or 1.89%, to 6,629.75, and the Nasdaq composite gained 452.24 points, or 2.09%, to 22,099.85.
Trump said on his social media, Truth Social, "Over the past two days, the United States and Iran have had very beneficial and productive conversations to resolve hostilities in the Middle East," and "I have directed the Ministry of National Defense to delay all military attacks on Iran's power plants and energy facilities for five days."
The United States had signaled strikes on Iran's critical facilities, but investor sentiment is recovering after it said it would delay attacks for five days.
Reports in Iran said talks with the United States were not taking place, but Trump also said he was scheduled to have a call with the Iranian side on the day. He also noted that both the United States and Iran hope to reach an agreement.
As Trump's remarks continued, expectations that tensions from the Middle East could ease are providing a tailwind to stocks.
Big tech firms with large market capitalization are leading the gains. Tesla rose 4.17% from the previous session to $383.29, while Amazon and Nvidia were up 3.07% and 2.85%, respectively. Apple and Microsoft were also both up more than 1%.
In particular, as crude prices fell as much as 14% intraday, travel-related stocks were posting sharp gains. Delta Air Lines rose 3.66% and Royal Caribbean Cruises gained 7.12%, with shares broadly higher.
International oil prices plunged early in the session but pared some losses as Iran denied talks and caution over the situation emerged. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for April delivery fell 9.68% from the previous session to $88.72 per barrel.