WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Stocks moved sharply higher during trading on Tuesday, extending the strong upward move seen over the course of the previous session. With the continued advanced, the major averages reached their best closing levels in four months.
The major averages pulled back off their best levels going into the close but remained firmly positive. The Nasdaq surged 281.56 points or 1.4 percent to 19,912.53, the Dow jumped 507.24 points or 1.2 percent to 43,089.02 and the S&P 500 shot up 67.01 points or 1.1 percent to 6,092.18.
The continued strength on Wall Street came after President Donald Trump announced a ceasefire between Israel and Iran is now in effect.
'On the assumption that everything works as it should, which it will, I would like to congratulate both countries, Israel and Iran, on having the stamina, courage, and intelligence to end what should be called 'THE 12-DAY WAR,' Trump wrote on Truth Social.
While both sides have accused each other of violating the ceasefire, traders appeared to remain optimistic about easing tensions in the Middle East.
Meanwhile, traders largely shrugged off comments from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell indicating the central bank will remain on hold despite pressure from Trump to lower interest rates.
'For the time being, we are well positioned to wait to learn more about the likely course of the economy before considering any adjustments to our policy stance,' Powell said in prepared remarks before the House Financial Services Committee.
On the U.S. economic front, the Conference Board released a report showing an unexpected deterioration by consumer confidence in the month of June.
The Conference Board said its consumer confidence index fell to 93.0 in June from a revised 98.4 in May. Economists had expected the index to inch up to 99.0 from the 98.0 originally reported for the previous month.
Sector News
Semiconductor stocks turned in some of the market's best performances on the day, with the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index soaring by 3.8 percent to its best closing level in five months.
Substantial strength was also visible among airline stocks, as reflected by the 3.6 percent surge by the NYSE Arca Airline Index.
Computer hardware, networking and biotechnology stocks also saw strength on the day, while gold and oil producer stocks bucked the uptrend.
Other Markets
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved sharply higher during trading on Tuesday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index shot up by 1.1 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index surged by 2.1 percent.
Most European stocks also moved to the upside on the day. Germany's DAX Index jumped by 1.6 percent and France's CAC 40 Index advanced by 1.0 percent, although the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index closed only slightly above the unchanged line.
In the bond market, treasuries have moved modestly higher over the course of the session. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, is down by 2.2 basis points at 4.300 percent.
Looking Ahead
Developments in the Middle East are likely to remain in focus on Wednesday, while a report on new home sales in the month of May also attract some attention.
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