-- US equity indexes rose after midday Thursday amid media reports that the Strait of Hormuz is open and Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Tel Aviv will begin direct talks with Lebanon to disarm Hezbollah.
The Nasdaq Composite rose 0.8% to 22,815.1, with the S&P 500 up 0.7% to 6,830.9 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average higher by 0.8% to 48,308.4, after staging a strong rally on Wednesday. All sectors except energy and healthcare rose intraday, while consumer discretionary, utilities, and real estate led the gainers.
All three mainstream indexes had opened lower on Thursday, reflecting Israel's attacks on Lebanon on Wednesday that, according to Reuters, killed more than 250 people. However, after midday, the equity gauges turned the corner.
This comes as the UK's ITV reported that Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Saeed Khatibzadeh said the Strait of Hormuz is open. Any civilian vessel can pass with guidance from the Iranian authorities, Khatibzadeh told ITV.
Meanwhile, CNN reported that the two-week ceasefire appeared to be on track, with fewer attacks reported across the Middle East on Thursday.
Further, Netanyahu's proposal, as per the CNN report, to begin talks with Lebanon to disarm Hezbollah, a militant group reportedly fighting as Iran's proxy, addressed concerns raised by Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian. Tel Aviv's strikes on Lebanon on Wednesday violated the truce deal and, more importantly, would render the upcoming US-Iran peace negotiations in Islamabad meaningless, Reuters cited Pezeshkian as saying.
West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures advanced 2.2% to $96.52, after trading more than 7% higher earlier in the session. Brent crude futures rose 0.4% to $95.07, after climbing almost 5% intraday.
US Treasury yields fell, with the 10-year down 2.6 basis points to 4.27%. The two-year rate dropped 3.6 basis points to 3.76%.
In precious metals, gold futures rose 0.9% to $4,821.1 and silver futures climbed 1.5% to $76.54.
In economic news, the personal consumption expenditures price index rose by 0.4%, and as expected, the year-over-year rate remained at 2.8%. The price index increased by 0.3% month-over-month in January.
The core PCE price index increased by 0.4%, as expected, and the same as in January. The year-over-year rate dropped to 3% from 3.1% in the previous month.
US economic growth, measured by gross domestic product, was revised lower to a 0.5% increase in Q4 from a 0.7% gain in the second estimate, compared with estimates for no revision in a survey compiled by Bloomberg.
US initial jobless claims rose to 219,000 in the week ended April 4 from an upwardly revised 203,000 in the previous week, compared with expectations for 210,000 in a Bloomberg-compiled poll.
In company news, CoreWeave (CRWV) said it signed an agreement with Meta Platforms (META) to provide artificial intelligence cloud capacity through December 2032 for about $21 billion. Shares of CoreWeave and Meta were up 6.5% and 3.1%, respectively.