US stocks close with gains amid hopes for continued US-Iran talks

The New York Stock Exchange closed the second trading day of the week with gains as investor sentiment improved on hopes that the US and Iran could hold another round of peace talks in the coming days.

The Dow Jones added 0.66%, or 317.74 points, to close Tuesday at 48,535.99.

The Nasdaq composite rose 1.96%, or 455.35 points, to 23,639.08, while the S&P 500 increased 1.18%, or 81.14 points, to 6,967.38.

The Volatility Index (VIX), often called the “fear index,” dropped 3.97% to 18.36.

The equity markets welcomed expectations that negotiations between Washington and Tehran could eventually produce a deal to permanently end the war that began on Feb. 28.

The two sides met in Islamabad over the weekend but there was no immediate agreement.

On Monday, US President Donald Trump said Iranian officials reached out to Washington and were willing to work out a deal.

On Tuesday he said the talks could restart in Pakistan within the next two days. "You should stay there, really, because something could be happening over the next two days, and we're more inclined to go there," he told a New York Post reporter currently in Islamabad.

Vice President JD Vance, who led the US delegation to Islamabad, also said that they had made “a lot of progress.”

Oil prices plunged following the news. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures dropped 6.9% to $92.20 a barrel as of 2030GMT, while international benchmark Brent crude futures fell 4.2% to $95.15.

On the data side, producer inflation in the US rose 4% annually in March, while the monthly producer price index (PPI) increased 0.5%, both coming below expectations.

European markets

European stocks also saw sharp increases, with the pan-European Stoxx Europe 600 index rising 0.99% to close at 619.95 points.

Among major regional indexes, Germany’s DAX 40 gained 1.27% to 24,044.22, and the UK’s FTSE 100 was up 0.25% to 10,609.06.

France’s CAC 40 advanced 1.12% to 8,327.86, while Italy’s FTSE MIB 30 added 1.36% to 48,175.65.

Spain's IBEX 35 index also rose 1.46% to end Tuesday at 18,286.10.