WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Following the rally seen over the course of the previous session, stocks saw further upside during trading on Friday. The major averages fluctuated early in the session but spent most of the day in positive territory.
The Dow advanced 353.51 points or 0.7 percent to 51,202.26, the S&P 500 climbed 37.16 points or 0.5 percent to 7,431.46 and the Nasdaq rose 79.18 points or 0.3 percent at 25,888.84. For the week, the major averages all increased by 0.7 percent.
Optimism about an end to the conflict in the Middle East contributed to continued strength on Wall Street, although traders seemed reluctant to make more significant moves amid conflicting comments from President Donald Trump.
Trump called off a previously announced attack on Iran on Thursday and signaled that a peace deal was near, triggering the rally by stocks.
In a post on Truth Social this morning, however, Trump claimed terms of the deal leaked by Iran have 'NOTHING to do with the terms that were agreed to, in writing.'
Trump also referred to the Iranians as 'very dishonorable people to deal with,' adding, 'With them, there is no such thing as dealing in good faith.'
Reports have indicated the U.S.-Iran memorandum of understanding calls for the Strait of Hormuz to be reopened immediately without tolls and for Iran to receive sanctions relief based on compliance.
The deal would also reportedly extend the ceasefire for 60 days, including in Lebanon, with nuclear negotiations set be held during that time.
A report from Bloomberg said the U.S. and Iran may sign the agreement on the sidelines of the Group of Seven world leaders summit next week.
An X post from Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif claiming a 'final, agreed upon text of the peace deal has been reached' added to the positive sentiment.
Traders also kept an eye on shares of SpaceX (SPCX), with the rocket maker making its debut on the Nasdaq in the largest initial public offering (IPO) in history. SpaceX soared by 19.3 percent on the day.
Sector News
Gold stocks moved sharply higher along with the price of the precious metal, resulting in a 3.1 percent spike by the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index.
A steep drop by the price of crude oil also contributed to substantial strength among airline stocks, with the NYSE Arca Airline Index surging by 2.8 percent.
Financial, computer hardware and semiconductor stocks also saw considerable strength, while some weakness was visible among biotechnology and utilities stocks.
Other Markets
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved sharply higher on Friday. South Korea's Kospi spiked by 4.6 percent, Japan's Nikkei 225 Index surged by 2.8 percent and China's Shanghai Composite Index jumped by 1.1 percent.
The major European markets have also shown strong moves to the upside on the day. While the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index shot up by 1.6 percent, the German DAX Index and the French CAC 40 Index both surged by 1.8 percent.
In the bond market, treasuries gave back ground after moving sharply higher in the previous session. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, rose 2.4 basis points to 4.487 percent.
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