NEW YORK, April 6, 2026, 18:08 (EDT)
- The Dow added 165 points, while both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq logged their fourth straight session in the green. Futures, though, hovered close to unchanged before Tuesday’s open. Reuters
- Brent finished at $109.77, with WTI closing at $112.40, as traders balanced chatter about a possible ceasefire with fears of new strikes targeting Iran. Reuters
- Seagate rallies on a Morgan Stanley upgrade; Tesla slips, hampered by concerns over deliveries and cash flow. Barron’s
U.S. stocks finished in the green on Monday, with futures hardly budging as the session wound down. Wall Street kept a close watch on uncertain Iran ceasefire talks, while bracing for possible oil market turbulence ahead of President Donald Trump’s Tuesday deadline. Both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq notched their fourth consecutive gain, the longest such run since late January. Reuters
Here’s the key point: trading is clustered around the Strait of Hormuz, a chokepoint moving nearly 20% of global oil and gas. Brent finished at $109.77 a barrel, U.S. crude hit $112.40—numbers that won’t give inflation any breathing room. Quick rate cuts from central banks? Not likely in this setup. Reuters
The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended up 165.21 points, or 0.36%, closing at 46,669.88. The S&P 500 picked up 29.14 points, or 0.44%, finishing at 6,611.83, while the Nasdaq Composite climbed 117.16 points, or 0.54%, to 21,996.34. Trading stayed thin after the holiday. Still, the S&P 500 has dropped 3.9% since the conflict began. Reuters
Overnight, Pakistan floated a two-part plan: start with a ceasefire right away and get Hormuz open, then push for a wider deal. As of Monday, Iran still hadn’t signed on. Trump, for his part, called Tehran’s new proposal a “significant step” yet dismissed it as “not good enough,” adding his Tuesday deadline stands. Reuters
Ryan Detrick, chief market strategist at Carson Group, noted investors seemed to find a bit of reassurance in the ongoing talks. “The reality is we’re inching, hopefully, closer to some type of resolution,” he said. Still, Detrick called the relentless stream of headlines “rather nauseating.” Reuters
The broader economic signals were mixed. Friday’s jobs data landed well above forecasts, with 178,000 positions added in March versus the 60,000 analysts had expected. But the Institute for Supply Management’s monthly services PMI slipped, while its prices-paid index—a key early read on inflation—jumped to the highest since October 2022. Reuters
Market leadership was all over the place. Communication services pushed the S&P 500 up, but utilities slipped behind. Travel names, along with aerospace, defense, and homebuilders, put in a stronger showing. Reuters
Seagate jumped roughly 5.6% after Morgan Stanley named it its preferred hard-drive stock, favoring it over Western Digital on expectations that AI-driven storage demand still has more upside. Shares of Western Digital and Micron were also higher. Nvidia notched its fourth consecutive gain, but according to Investor’s Business Daily, the chipmaker stayed under technical thresholds closely watched by traders. Barron’s
Tesla slipped roughly 2.2%, with traders still hung up on sluggish first-quarter deliveries and a new sell rating out of JPMorgan. According to Barron’s, the company shipped 358,023 vehicles—production outpaced sales by some 50,000 units. That surplus could pinch free cash flow, JPMorgan analyst Ryan Brinkman cautioned. Barron’s
But things could change in a hurry. While ships flagged by nations Iran deems friendly have managed to get through, the strait is still mostly closed off. “Very fluid situation,” said John Kilduff, partner at Again Capital. IMF chief Kristalina Georgieva pointed out that the war has already knocked out 13% of global oil supply, warning, “all roads now lead to higher prices and slower growth.” Reuters
Futures barely budged late Monday, with traders holding off on making big bets before Tuesday’s open. Markets are inching up, but moves remain driven by each new headline. Investors
