The popular blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average could soon hit 50,000 again for the first time since February as U.S. stocks keep shrugging off the war in Iran.
The Dow Jones rose by as much as 500 points, or about 1 percent, to above 49,700 during the May 6 trading session.
It has been a volatile year so far for the index of 30 large, established U.S. companies.
Despite wild market swings, the Dow Jones is up by 3.5 percent year to date.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite index could finish the midweek session at a fresh record high. The Nasdaq advanced by about 300 points—or 1.2 percent—to above 25,600.
The broader S&P 500 also firmed by more than 60 points—or almost 1 percent—to a new intraday all-time high of above 7,300.
The indexes have jumped by 10 percent and 6 percent, respectively, so far this year.
Investors cheered reports that the United States and Iran were inching toward an agreement to resolve the 10-week-old conflict.
President Donald Trump said on social media that a deal was uncertain.
“Assuming Iran agrees to give what has been agreed to, which is, perhaps, a big assumption, the already legendary Epic Fury will be at an end, and the highly effective blockade will allow the Hormuz Strait to be open to all, including Iran,” Trump said in a May 6 Truth Social post.
“If they don’t agree, the bombing starts, and it will be, sadly, at a much higher level and intensity than it was before.”
A day earlier, the president paused Project Freedom, the U.S. operation to guide stranded commercial vessels out of the Strait of Hormuz, but confirmed that the blockade of Iranian ports would remain intact. The purpose was to finalize an arrangement with Iran.
Prospects of a peace deal sent global energy prices lower.
A barrel of West Texas Intermediate crude oil—the U.S. benchmark for prices—declined by nearly 6 percent to below $97 on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Brent, the international benchmark for oil prices, also fell by about 6 percent to below $103 per barrel in overseas trading.
“Developments in the Middle East will remain key to price direction,” commodity strategists at ING said in a May 6 note.
“A deal that normalises oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz is crucial. Roughly 13 [million barrels per day] of disrupted supply is being largely offset by inventory, which is clearly declining rapidly.
“This leaves the market more vulnerable with each passing day. Tighter stocks will only leave the oil market trading in an ever more volatile manner.”
The sharp midweek drop may help put a temporary lid on surging gasoline prices.
The national average for a gallon of gasoline is nearly $4.54, up by 30 cents in a week, according to AAA.
Jobs and Stocks
In addition to geopolitical developments, markets welcomed positive labor market data and solid earnings.
Private companies added 109,000 jobs in April, according to payroll processor ADP. This was up from 61,000 the previous month and represented the largest increase since January 2025.
April’s reading exceeded the consensus forecast of 99,000.
The latest figure continues the trend of stronger employment growth since the beginning of the year, according to Bill Adams, chief U.S. economist at Fifth Third Commercial Bank.
“Considering the recent anxiety in business and consumer surveys about the Iran War, the report is an encouraging sign of resilience from the U.S. economy,” Adams said in an emailed note to The Epoch Times.
“The economy entered the year riding tailwinds from tax cuts, higher public spending, and the Fed’s interest rate cuts in late 2025. These tailwinds have contributed to stronger hiring in the last few months.”
Several companies also posted strong earnings that beat market estimates.
Shares of chipmaker Advanced Micro Devices rallied by 20 percent after posting strong guidance, and the company forecasts second-quarter revenue of $11.2 billion. First-quarter results also beat analysts’ expectations.
Paul Meeks, head of technology research at Freedom Capital Markets, remains bullish as the company makes a push for a “strong No. 2 in the race for” graphics processing units.
“There has also been a renaissance in the data center for their [central processing unit] business, which in the past had been essentially the brains for laptops and desktops, and it was a pretty mature market,” he said in a note emailed to The Epoch Times.
Server maker Super Micro Computer’s stock rose by about 15 percent. It reported better-than-expected revenues and profits.
Media juggernaut Disney also posted solid fiscal second-quarter revenues that surpassed projections.
Troy Myers contributed to this report.
