NEW YORK: Wall Street stocks edged higher early Wednesday, extending an upswing tied to optimism the US-Iran war could be resolved soon.
The broad-based S&P 500 has risen more than five percent since April 6, as the two sides have held to a ceasefire after US President Donald Trump had earlier threatened massive bombing of Iran.
The market also believes the Strait of Hormuz will be completely reopened soon, enabling the resumption of significant oil deliveries.
READ MORE: Wall St jumps on Mideast de-escalation hopes; earnings in focus
About 10 minutes into trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.3 percent at 48,656.41.
The S&P 500 also climbed 0.3 percent to 6,984.73, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index advanced 0.4 percent to 23,721.07.
“We’ve placed in some better sentiment around the potential for an end to this war,” said Art Hogan of B. Riley Wealth Management.
“But you run out of gas on that a bit when you move as high as we have over the course of the last 10 days.”
A senior US official told AFP that Trump’s administration had not formally agreed to extend the ceasefire, but that “there is continued engagement between the US and Iran to reach a deal.”
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