Stocks surge on Iran deal hope and chip lift

US stocks climbed Thursday as optimism over the interim US-Iran peace deal helped push oil lower and fueled a fresh rally in AI-linked chip names. The Nasdaq Composite rose nearly 2%, the S&P 500 gained 1.1%, and the Dow added about 0.3%—even as investors proc

For a market that has spent weeks bracing for the next headline, Thursday felt like a release valve.

When investors showed up to trade, the move started in tech. The Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) surged nearly 2%. the S&P 500 (^GSPC) rose 1.1%. and the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) gained about 0.3%—a quieter finish than the rest of Wall Street. but still a rebound from the sharp closing losses that had hit earlier.

The stock-market mood was tied to two developments arriving back-to-back: the signing of an interim US-Iran peace deal and the Federal Reserve’s latest interest-rate decision. The deal’s optimism helped ease oil’s war-time pressure. and that shift in energy helped offset investor anxiety about the possibility of higher rates later this year.

On Wednesday, President Trump and his Iranian counterpart signed a memo outlining their countries’ peace agreement. The deal included the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz to commercial traffic and went into effect. The US also removed its naval blockade in the region. Negotiations on more protracted issues—Tehran’s nuclear program among them—were expected to take place over the next 60 days.

Brent crude futures (BZ=F) have been giving back war-time gains in recent weeks. On Thursday, Brent hovered around $79 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate (CL=F) traded above $75, with the backing of increased crossings of the strait.

Underneath that calm in oil prices, markets were still watching the central bank. On Wednesday, the Federal Reserve held rates steady. But the tone turned hawkish—policy makers abandoned a dovish bias even as inflation has remained elevated and the job market has stayed steady amid the conflict with Iran. On Thursday. the pattern showed up in markets that were already uneasy: investors were keeping an eye on the chances that rates would stay higher for longer. with more Fed officials signaling a hike is on the table later this year.

The jobs picture didn’t fully relieve that tension. Data from the Labor Department on Thursday showed initial jobless claims were slightly hotter than estimates but cooled compared with the week prior. Initial jobless claims fell 4,000 to 226,000 in the week ended June 13. The result was slightly above expectations, while new claims for unemployment benefits were expected to be marginally lower at 225,000. Last week’s tally was revised to 230,000. The four-week moving average of initial claims rose to 223,250 from 219,250 the week prior. Continuing claims rose to 1.810 million in the week ended June 6. from the prior week’s revised count of 1.786 million. while economists had been looking for 1.789 million continuing claims.

Even as investors digested the Fed and the labor data, the most visible spark on Thursday came from chips.

Chip stocks surged as traders moved into risk-on positioning and the AI trade continued. Intel (INTC) shares led the surge higher after President Trump posted that iPhone and laptop maker Apple (AAPL) agreed to work with Intel to build its processors. Intel was the headline in a broad wave: Micron (MU). Applied Materials (AMAT). and Marvell Technology (MRVL) all jumped to new all time highs. Each of those major American chip names rallied by more than 6% to set new record highs. including Intel. Micron. Applied Materials. and Marvell Technology. Foreign names—Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSM), Arm Holdings (ARM), and ASML Holding (ASML)—also advanced to fresh highs.

The Intel lift was sharp enough to pull the narrative by itself. Shares in Intel surged 11% on Thursday. with the stock jumping before the bell after Trump said Apple agreed to partner with Intel to design and make chips in the US. Trump said in a post to Truth Social: “I decided to help Intel because we need to design and build our Chips right here in America.” By the time investors were watching last check levels. Intel was up 9% and appeared poised to notch a new record high if the move held in regular trading.

There was more market logic behind why so many chip names moved together. The Federal Reserve’s decision to hold rates steady did little to cool the year’s hottest trade, and leadership remained concentrated in a handful of high-demand “bottleneck” names.

The rally didn’t stop at US desks. Asia’s tone also tracked the US-Iran deal optimism, with several benchmarks setting fresh records. In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 (^N225) gained 1.9% to 71,233.35, topping 70,000 for the first time this week. South Korea’s Kospi (^KS11) gained 0.6% to 8,917.31, and Taiwan’s Taiex jumped 1%. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng (^HSI) fell 1.4% to 23,968.66, while the Shanghai Composite edged 0.1% higher to 0.1% up.

Not every stock story was euphoric, though. SpaceX (SPCX) stock tumbled for a second day in a row on Thursday, dropping as much as 10% before trimming losses. The decline extended losses after breaking a three-day winning streak in the prior session. when broader markets declined following the Federal Reserve’s decision to leave interest rates unchanged—even though major indexes rebounded on Thursday.

For gold, the Iran deal brought support even as the Fed’s message carried a warning sign for the metal. Gold rose. supported by the signing of the interim peace deal between the US and Iran. even as the Federal Reserve signaled a rate hike later in the year. Bullion advanced as much as 1.7% to $4,328 an ounce, erasing the drop in the previous session. Spot gold rose 1.6% to $4,322.83 an ounce as of 9:21 a.m. Singapore time. Silver gained 2.5% to $69.61 after falling 3% in the previous session, and platinum and palladium climbed. The peace agreement was signed electronically on Wednesday evening. but it was unclear if the Strait of Hormuz had yet reopened.

Policy moves weren’t just an American story. The Bank of England voted to hold its benchmark lending rate unchanged at 3.75% in a split 7-2 vote. The Monetary Policy Committee cited potential easing in Iran war price pressures and a weakened UK labor market. warning that “the risk of material second-round effects in price and wage-setting. against which policy needs to lean. is greater the longer higher energy prices persist.” At the same time. it said “the labor market continues to loosen” and signs of a weakening economy could contain inflationary pressures. The statement also included the line that “monetary policy cannot affect global energy prices.”.

For Wall Street, Thursday’s close carried an extra pause: Thursday was the last day of trading for Wall Street stock markets, which would close on Friday to observe the Juneteenth holiday.

By the end of the session, the picture looked less like a single bet and more like a balancing act—oil easing on peace-deal hopes, chips surging on AI demand and a new Apple-Intel chipmaking partnership, and rates risk still hanging in the air after the Fed’s hawkish turn.

US stocks Nasdaq S&P 500 Dow Iran deal Strait of Hormuz Federal Reserve interest rates Intel Apple AI chips semiconductor rally oil prices Juneteenth