All three major New York stock indexes surged Friday after President Donald Trump said he would soon sign a peace agreement with Iran to end the war.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed up 929.97 points, or 1.86 percent, at 50,848.75.
The S&P 500 gained 127.31 points, or 1.75 percent, to finish at 7,394.30, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite rose 640.16 points, or 2.54 percent, to close at 25,809.66.
Markets had been on edge in the morning after Trump made hawkish remarks toward Iran, sending international oil prices sharply higher. The mood reversed in the afternoon when he announced he was calling off a planned airstrike against the country.
Trump had threatened airstrikes against Iran for three consecutive days before abruptly posting on Truth Social on Friday afternoon that "discussions with Iran have gone up to the highest levels of Iranian leadership and have been approved," and that he had "cancelled the strike and bombing of Iran that was scheduled for this evening, Friday."
He then told reporters at the White House that negotiations with Iran on ending the war had reached the final stage of document drafting, and that a signing ceremony could take place in Europe this weekend.
International oil prices fell sharply on expectations of a ceasefire and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.
yeonjoo7@heraldcorp.com
