Stocks staged a powerful rally on Thursday, with all three major indexes climbing sharply after President Trump called off a planned third night of military strikes against Iran and signaled progress toward a ceasefire deal. The about-face from earlier in the day — when Trump had threatened to seize Iran’s Kharg Island oil hub — sent investors rushing back into equities, with enthusiasm further fueled by the looming SpaceX IPO pricing and a resilient performance from semiconductor stocks. A hot wholesale inflation print added some caution to the mix, but it was not enough to derail the day’s broad advance.
What Moved Markets
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 50,833.99, up 915.21 points, or 1.83%. The S&P 500 finished at 7,394.30, a gain of 127.31 points, or 1.75%. The Nasdaq Composite led the charge, rising 640.16 points, or 2.54%, to close at 25,809.66.
The dominant catalyst was the dramatic reversal in U.S.-Iran tensions. Markets sold off early after Trump threatened to strike Iran “very hard tonight” and mentioned capturing Kharg Island, which handles a significant portion of Iran’s oil exports. But within hours he reversed course, announcing the cancellation of planned strikes and suggesting a settlement could be near. Oil prices tumbled on the news — West Texas Intermediate crude fell roughly 2.6% to around $87.71 a barrel — while stocks ripped higher as fears of a wider Middle East conflict eased.
Adding to the optimism was the eve of the SpaceX IPO. With pricing expected after Thursday’s close and the Nasdaq debut set for Friday under the ticker SPCX, retail investor orders have surpassed $100 billion against a $75 billion offering — making it potentially the largest IPO in history. The frenzy lifted sentiment across tech and growth stocks, particularly in the AI infrastructure space that SpaceX’s launch ambitions are tightly linked to.
The one significant cloud on the day’s economic data was the May Producer Price Index report. Headline PPI surged 1.1% month-over-month and climbed 6.5% year-over-year, topping forecasts and signaling that wholesale price pressures are accelerating at their fastest pace since late 2022. The data reinforced expectations that the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates later this year, but the geopolitical relief overshadowed the concern for most investors.
Notable Movers
Intel (INTC) was among the day’s biggest winners, jumping roughly 9% after reports that Alphabet had contracted the chipmaker to manufacture more than 3 million custom AI chips. The deal represents a significant vote of confidence in Intel’s foundry ambitions and came at a critical time for a company working to reclaim its standing in the AI hardware race.
AMD (AMD) and Micron (MU) each added more than 3%, while equipment makers Lam Research (LRCX) and Applied Materials (AMAT) surged over 8%. The semiconductor group broadly benefited from a combination of the SpaceX IPO hype, the Intel-Alphabet news, and bargain hunting after a rough stretch for chip stocks earlier in the week.
Oracle (ORCL) was the session’s most prominent loser, sliding nearly 12% after reporting fiscal Q4 results. While revenue hit a record $19.2 billion — slightly above estimates — investors were rattled by the company’s capital expenditure guidance. Oracle spent $55.7 billion in capex for fiscal 2026 and forecast that figure could reach $95 billion in fiscal 2027 as it races to build out AI data center capacity. The market punished the stock for prioritizing scale over near-term profitability, with shares hitting their lowest level since May.
Microsoft (MSFT) and Salesforce (CRM) also closed lower, down roughly 1.8% and 2.4% respectively, as investors rotated out of cloud software names following Oracle’s cautionary capex warning about enterprise AI spending cycles.
On the positive side, major bank stocks recovered ground after the Iran de-escalation. Goldman Sachs (GS) and Citigroup (C) rose more than 2%, while JPMorgan Chase added about 1.5%, as a softer geopolitical backdrop and stable credit markets supported the financial sector.
Looking Ahead
All eyes will be on the SpaceX debut Friday morning — the stock will open on the Nasdaq under SPCX, and the sheer scale of retail demand could make for a volatile first session. Investors should also watch for any further developments out of Iran, as Trump’s announcements have moved markets sharply in both directions this week and a breakdown in ceasefire talks could quickly reverse Thursday’s gains. The hot PPI data will keep Fed rate-hike expectations in focus heading into next week; with inflation at the wholesale level running above 6% annually, the case for additional tightening is difficult to ignore. Any further commentary from Fed officials on the rate path will likely command close attention.