US Stocks Edge Higher Amid Optimism Over Middle East Peace Talks

Middle East Truce Optimism Boosts Wall Street Indices

On Thursday, Wall Street stock indices experienced a surge as optimism regarding the stability of the Middle East truce grew. Israel announced its intention to enter direct discussions with Lebanon, a significant development in the region's diplomatic efforts. As of 1 p.m. Eastern Time, the S&P 500 rose 0.6%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.7%, and the Nasdaq Composite was 0.7% higher.

The market's positive trend was also reflected in the performance of crude oil prices. The main US oil benchmark, West Texas Intermediate, rose 3.2% to reach $97.43 per barrel, while Brent crude, the global reference, climbed 1.4% to $96.01 per barrel. However, the viability of the truce remains questionable due to ongoing military operations against Iran-supported Hezbollah forces in Lebanon.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated that he has cleared the way for direct mediation "as soon as possible" with Lebanese officials. The talks aim to focus on the disarmament of the Hezbollah militia and the formalization of stable diplomatic relations between the two neighbors. Historically, the two nations have remained in a technical state of war since the foundation of Israel in 1948.

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In economic indicators, a report showed that an underlying measure of inflation was slightly hotter in February. A separate report indicated that more US workers applied for jobless claims last week. The yield on the 10-year Treasury fell to 4.26% from 4.29% late on Wednesday.

Key stock movers included Simply Good Foods, which tumbled 15.1% after reporting a worse drop in quarterly revenue than expected. Constellation Brands shares soared 5.3% after the liquor maker reported stronger quarterly results than expected. Among megacaps, Microsoft and Apple stocks fell 1.7% and 0.7%, respectively, while Amazon.com gained 1.7%. Applied Digital shares dropped 7.1% after the data center operator's third-quarter net loss widened.

Gold prices rose on Thursday on a weaker US dollar. At 9:16 a.m. ET (1316 GMT), spot gold was up 0.9% at $4,755.99 per ounce. US gold futures edged up 0.1% to $4,781.80. Among other metals, spot silver gained 0.5% to $74.46 per ounce, platinum added 0.8% to $2,046.54, and palladium edged 0.4% down to $1,548.23.

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