Dow soars 1,000 points as Trump claims talks held with Iran
Photo taken on Aug. 12, 2024 shows the trading floor of the New York Stock Exchange NYSE in New York, the United States. (Liu Yanan/Xinhua via Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — The Dow Jones Industrial average soared more than 1,000 points on Monday after President Donald Trump claimed “productive conversations” had been held between the U.S. and Iran.
The major stock indexes shed some of the morning’s gains by midday as a flurry of headlines about the Middle East conflict appeared to elicit volatile price fluctuations.
The peace talks — which Iranian officials denied — sent the price of oil plunging on Monday on hopes that negotiations could reopen the Strait of Hormuz and end a weeks-long global energy shock.
The Dow surged 700 points or 1.5%, while the S&P 500 jumped 1.2%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq increased 1.3%.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
A display of one kilogram gold bars at Conclude Zrt bullion dealer arranged in Budapest, Hungary, on Thursday, Jan. 22, 2026. Gold closed in on $5,000 an ounce, with geopolitical risks and renewed threats to the Federal Reserve’s independence supporting a record-breaking rally. (Photographer: Akos Stiller/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Gold soared to a new record high on Monday, topping $5,000 per ounce for the first time ever as investors rushed toward the safe-haven asset amid geopolitical unrest.
The latest uptick continued a blazing-hot stretch for gold. Over the past year, the price has climbed 83%, far outpacing a 14% jump in the S&P 500 during that period. In early trading on Monday, the price of gold stood at $5,077 per ounce.
Silver prices also climbed on Monday, jumping about 8% in the early hours of trading. The price of silver stood at $110 an ounce as of Monday morning.
Heightened geopolitical and economic uncertainty have boosted demand for gold and silver, which typically display a degree of independence from movements in stock prices, some analysts previously told ABC News. Volatility in bond markets and a devaluation of the U.S. dollar, meanwhile, have unsettled alternative assets typically viewed as safe-haven investments.
The labor market has slowed in recent months, while inflation has hovered nearly a percentage point higher than the Federal Reserve’s target rate of 2%.
Meanwhile, geopolitical conflict looms amid negotiations over Greenland, U.S.-backed leadership in Venezuela and the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine.
Over the weekend, President Donald Trump threatened 100% tariffs against Canada if the country pursues a trade deal with China. In response, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said the country has no such plans. Under the terms of a free trade agreement with Mexico and the United States, Canada cannot seek trade agreements with nonmarket economies unless it provides notification ahead of time, Carney said.
Precious metals are widely viewed as a hedge against geopolitical unrest because the millennia-old stores of value are perceived as investments that could outlive calamity.
The flight to gold in moments of market turbulence draws on decades of evidence, according to an analysis co-authored in 2025 by Campbell Harvey, a professor at Duke’s Fuqua School of Business who studies commodity prices. The price of gold moved higher during eight of the last 11 major stock market selloffs stretching back to the late 1980s, researchers found.
However, gold and silver prices carry volatility of their own, especially when buyers enter the market at a high point, risking losses instead of providing a security blanket.
Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, March 31, 2026 in New York City. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — Stocks closed mixed in volatile trading on Thursday after President Donald Trump delivered a televised address vowing to hit Iran “extremely hard” over the coming weeks.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed down 60 points, or 0.1%, after opening down by 600 points, while the S&P 500 ticked up 0.1. The tech-heavy Nasdaq increased 0.1%.
Each of the major indexes tumbled more than 1% in early trading, but they quickly recovered most or all of those losses.
The rollercoaster trading followed losses across Asian and European markets. Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 index slipped 2.3% and the pan-European STOXX 600 fell 0.6%.
Oil prices, meanwhile, surged as traders feared a persistent supply shortage amid the ongoing U.S.-Israeli war with Iran. U.S. oil prices climbed more than 10% on Thursday, registering about $111 a barrel.
Gasoline prices in the U.S. ticked up to $4.08 on average per gallon, marking a leap of $1.09 over the past month, AAA data showed.
Speaking at the White House on Wednesday, Trump voiced mixed messages about his plans for the Middle East conflict. He said Iran is no longer a threat to the U.S. and the war in Iran is “nearing completion.” However, he added, the U.S. plans to continue striking Iran over the next two or three weeks.
“We’re going to bring them back to the stone ages where they belong,” Trump said.
The trading volatility on Thursday interrupted an upswing for markets earlier in the week. On Tuesday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average soared more than 1,100 points, adding another 220 points on Wednesday as traders anticipated Trump may signal an off-ramp from the war in his evening remarks.
Since the war with Iran began on Feb. 28, Trump has issued conflicting signals about the expected duration of the war. On several occasions, stocks have climbed or fallen as markets weighed the implications of Trump’s comments.
The war prompted Iran’s effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a maritime trading route that facilitates the transport of about one-fifth of the global oil supply.
The vast majority of fuel delivered through the strait is bound for Asia, placing the heaviest pressure on energy supply in that continent. Since oil and gas are sold on a global market, however, the shortage has sent prices rising for just about everyone.
On Wednesday night, Trump urged other countries to take responsibility for reopening the strait.
“The countries of the world that do receive oil through the Hormuz Straight must take care of that passage,” Trump said. “We will be helpful, but they should take the lead in protecting the oil that they so desperately depend on.”
A potential U.S. exit from the war without ensuring that the strait is open could cast uncertainty over the path to a resumption of normal tanker traffic and a remedy for the current global oil shortage.
Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, March 31, 2026 in New York City. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — Stocks ticked lower in volatile trading on Thursday after President Donald Trump delivered a televised address vowing to hit Iran “extremely hard” over the coming weeks.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 75 points, or 0.1%, after opening down by 600 points, while the S&P 500 dropped 0.06%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq declined 0.1%.
Each of the major indexes tumbled more than 1% in early trading, but they quickly recovered most of those losses.
The rollercoaster trading followed losses across Asian and European markets. Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 index slipped 2.3% and the pan-European STOXX 600 fell 0.6%.
Oil prices, meanwhile, surged as traders feared a persistent supply shortage amid the ongoing U.S.-Israeli war with Iran. U.S. oil prices climbed more than 10% on Thursday, registering about $111 a barrel.
Gasoline prices in the U.S. ticked up to $4.08 on average per gallon, marking a leap of $1.09 over the past month, AAA data showed.
Speaking at the White House on Wednesday, Trump voiced mixed messages about his plans for the Middle East conflict. He said Iran is no longer a threat to the U.S. and the war in Iran is “nearing completion.” However, he added, the U.S. plans to continue striking Iran over the next two or three weeks.
“We’re going to bring them back to the stone ages where they belong,” Trump said.
The trading volatility on Thursday interrupted an upswing for markets earlier in the week. On Tuesday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average soared more than 1,100 points, adding another 220 points on Wednesday as traders anticipated Trump may signal an off-ramp from the war in his evening remarks.
Since the war with Iran began on Feb. 28, Trump has issued conflicting signals about the expected duration of the war. On several occasions, stocks have climbed or fallen as markets weighed the implications of Trump’s comments.
The war prompted Iran’s effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a maritime trading route that facilitates the transport of about one-fifth of the global oil supply.
The vast majority of fuel delivered through the strait is bound for Asia, placing the heaviest pressure on energy supply in that continent. Since oil and gas are sold on a global market, however, the shortage has sent prices rising for just about everyone.
On Wednesday night, Trump urged other countries to take responsibility for reopening the strait.
“The countries of the world that do receive oil through the Hormuz Straight must take care of that passage,” Trump said. “We will be helpful, but they should take the lead in protecting the oil that they so desperately depend on.”
A potential U.S. exit from the war without ensuring that the strait is open could cast uncertainty over the path to a resumption of normal tanker traffic and a remedy for the current global oil shortage.
