US equity indexes turned mixed ahead of Thursday's close as President Donald Trump appeared open to giving Iran time to review Washington's latest peace proposal while reportedly vowing to be firm on the nuclear issue.
The Nasdaq Composite was steady at 26,279.1, while the S&P 500 was up 0.1% to 7,440.8 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 0.5% to 50,254.1.
Iran on Thursday said it is reviewing the Trump administration's latest proposal to end the war after the US president said he was prepared to wait a few more days to "get the right answers" from Tehran, CNBC reported.
Iran Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said the Islamic Republic had received the views of the American side and is "reviewing" it, CNBC cited the state-run agency Nour News. Iran said the latest US peace proposal partly bridged the gap between the warring sides, but disagreements remain, Bloomberg reported.
Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei ordered enriched uranium to remain in the Islamic Republic, Reuters reported Thursday, citing two senior sources from the country. However, Tehran will "downblend" the nuclear material itself, an Iranian official told Al Jazeera, which also reported Trump has vowed to seize the nuclear material.
Further, Iran is also discussing with Oman ways to set up a permanent toll system to formalize its control of maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, Bloomberg reported. "Iran and Oman must mobilize all their resources both to provide security services and to manage navigation, in the most appropriate manner," the Iranian ambassador to France, Mohammad Amin-Nejad, said in an interview with Bloomberg in Paris on Wednesday.
West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures fell 1.1% to $97.22, and Brent crude futures declined 1.1% to $103.91 in the final leg of trading.