[New York Stock Exchange] Second Ceasefire Talks Expected Within Two Days... Nasdaq Closes Higher for 10 Consecutive Sessions

Oil Prices Plunge Across the Board
IEA Forecasts Decline in Oil Demand This Year
U.S. March PPI Falls Short of Expectations

New York Stock Exchange. New York, USA – Photo by Yoonju Hwang

On April 14 (local time), all three major U.S. stock indexes closed higher. This upward trend was influenced by growing risk appetite, as international oil prices fell amid expectations that a second ceasefire meeting between the United States and Iran would take place within two days.

At the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), the Dow Jones Industrial Average (Dow) closed at 48,535.99, up 317.74 points (0.66%) from the previous session. The S&P 500 Index, which is large-cap focused, rose 81.14 points (1.18%) to 6,967.38, while the technology-heavy Nasdaq Index extended its winning streak to 10 consecutive sessions, jumping 455.347 points (1.96%) to close at 23,639.083.

The indexes rallied thanks to comments from U.S. President Donald Trump, who said a second ceasefire meeting between the United States and Iran could be held within two days. In a phone interview with the New York Post, President Trump stated, "Something could happen within the next two days, and the likelihood of us going there (to Islamabad) has increased."

This comes just one day after foreign media reported that the United States and Iran were considering a second ceasefire meeting behind the scenes. Hopes that the two-week ceasefire could be extended, reducing tensions in the Middle East, had a positive impact on the markets.

Additionally, the U.S. Producer Price Index (PPI) for March, which came in significantly below market expectations, also contributed to improved investor sentiment. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the March PPI rose 0.5% from the previous month. This figure was well below the Dow Jones consensus estimate of 1.1%. Core PPI, which excludes food and energy, increased by 0.1%, also falling short of the forecast of 0.5%.

Ross Mayfield, investment strategist at Baird, commented, "While I don't think there is zero chance of another decline due to renewed tensions with Iran, the probability is low," adding, "It seems the market has already priced in some degree of concern over Iran."

He continued, "The market has now recovered to near all-time highs, the investment environment has become much clearer, and with the upcoming earnings season, the upward trend is likely to continue."

International oil prices, meanwhile, reversed the previous day's gains and turned lower. On the New York Mercantile Exchange, May delivery West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures plunged 7.9% to finish at $94.79 per barrel. At the ICE Futures Exchange, June delivery Brent crude futures fell 4.6% to close at $94.79 per barrel.

The decline in oil prices was further fueled by a report from the International Energy Agency (IEA), which projected that due to the Iran war, global oil demand would decrease by an average of 80,000 barrels per day this year. This reversed last month's forecast, which had projected a year-on-year increase of 640,000 barrels per day.

Energy stocks such as ExxonMobil (-2.38%) and Chevron (-2.50%) closed broadly lower. In contrast, airline stocks rose on ceasefire expectations, with Delta up 7.07%, American Airlines up 8.02%, and United Airlines up 2.31%.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.