Dow Rises 868 Points Amid Gulf Ceasefire: Stock Market Today

Investors, traders and speculators are celebrating a Middle East peace worked out through the diplomatic channels of social media. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works. Profit and prosper with the best of Kiplinger's advice on investing, taxes, retirement, personal finance and much more. Delivered daily. Enter your email in the box and click Sign Me Up.You are now subscribedYour newsletter sign-up was successfulWant to add more newsletters?Delivered dailyKiplinger TodayProfit and prosper with the best of Kiplinger's advice on investing, taxes, retirement, personal finance and much more delivered daily. Smart money moves start here.Sent five days a weekKiplinger A Step AheadGet practical help to make better financial decisions in your everyday life, from spending to savings on top deals.Delivered dailyKiplinger Closing BellGet today's biggest financial and investing headlines delivered to your inbox every day the U.S. stock market is open.Sent twice a weekKiplinger Adviser IntelFinancial pros across the country share best practices and fresh tactics to preserve and grow your wealth.Delivered weeklyKiplinger Tax TipsTrim your federal and state tax bills with practical tax-planning and tax-cutting strategies.Sent twice a weekKiplinger Retirement TipsYour twice-a-week guide to planning and enjoying a financially secure and richly rewarding retirementSent bimonthly.Kiplinger Adviser AngleInsights for advisers, wealth managers and other financial professionals.Sent twice a weekKiplinger Investing WeeklyYour twice-a-week roundup of promising stocks, funds, companies and industries you should consider, ones you should avoid, and why.Sent weekly for six weeksKiplinger Invest for RetirementYour step-by-step six-part series on how to invest for retirement, from devising a successful strategy to exactly which investments to choose. Crude oil prices collapsed and stock prices surged Friday after Iran declared the Strait of Hormuz "completely open" in a post on X, citing a ceasefire in Lebanon.

The Nasdaq Composite is now on its longest winning streak since 1992, as the tech-heavy index and the S&P 500 hit new all-time closing highs, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average rallied to within another good day's climb of its own fresh peak.Passage for all commercial vessels through the Strait of Hormuz is "open for the remaining period of ceasefire" between Lebanon and Israel, Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi said before the opening bell.President Donald Trump, who announced the 10-day Lebanon-Israel ceasefire Thursday evening, followed with a "FULLY OPEN AND READY FOR FULL PASSAGE" Truth Social post. Trump also said a U.S. naval blockade of the Strait "will remain in full force" until a deal with Iran is agreed.Become a smarter, better informed investor. Subscribe from just $107.88 $24.99, plus get up to 4 Special IssuesProfit and prosper with the best of expert advice on investing, taxes, retirement, personal finance and more - straight to your e-mail.Profit and prosper with the best of expert advice - straight to your e-mail.The ceasefire in Lebanon held up through Friday's trading session. A separate ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran is scheduled to end on April 21. According to Axios, the U.S. and Iran will meet in Pakistan as early as Sunday.The front-month West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures contract fell 8.8% to $83.13 per barrel, while Brent crude oil futures, a global benchmark, dropped 8.8% to $90.62. WTI is up 34% since the war between the U.S., Israel and Iran began on February 28, Brent 25%.Here are three things you can do now in response to volatile crude oil prices.By the closing bell, the Nasdaq Composite was up 1.5% at 24,468, ending the week with a gain of 6.8% and extending its winning streak to 13. The S&P 500 was higher by 1.2% for the day and 4.5% for the week at 7,126, breaking the 7,100 level in the process.The blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average had added 1.8% to 49,447, with 27 of 30 Dow Jones stocks closing in positive territory. Papa Dow was up 3.2% for the week, and is within 2.2% and 1.5% of its February 10 all-time intraday and closing highs of 50,512 and 50,188, respectively.Looking for more timely stock market news to help gauge the health of your portfolio? Sign up for Closing Bell, our free newsletter that's delivered straight to your inbox at the close of each trading day."This wave of optimism has been enough to carry U.S. stocks to fresh highs as the S&P 500 crosses 7,100 for the first time," Hargreaves Lansdowne Head of Equity Research Derren Nathan observes. Nathan notes that interest rates are declining on the potential for a less severe impact on inflation from the Middle East energy shock.Indeed, the 10-year U.S. Treasury yield was down to 4.244% from 4.309% on Thursday, and CME FedWatch shows the probability the federal funds rate remains at 3.50% to 3.75% through 2026 falling from above 70% on Thursday to less than 50% on Friday.Still, as Nathan concludes, "Markets will want to see decisive action towards a durable peace if this shift is to be anything more than temporary."Netflix (NFLX, -9.7%) looks a lot cheaper these days simply because of the stock's 10-for-1 split in November. After sliding on a perfect storm of soft guidance and somewhat surprising moves in the C-suite, the streaming giant actually might be a bargain at current levels.UBS analyst John Hodulik saw upside of 20.6% for NFLX based on its April 16 closing price, even after the communication services stock shared weak second-quarter guidance along with expectations-beating first-quarter results. "No upside to guidance is a disappointment," Hodulik said, "but we still believe operational momentum is strong."Meanwhile, co-founder and board chair Reed Hastings will leave Netflix in June. Hodulik didn't comment specifically on the change at the top, but he did identify "Netflix as THE industry leader in streaming video." The analyst sees sentiment on the stock improving "as Netflix's growth prospects, monetization opportunity and competitive moat come back into focus."Upside from here now looks like 34.4% after Friday's price action. Hodulik, who reiterated his Buy rating on the stock, sees NFLX trading at $130 12 months from now."We believe a wider range of content and investments in live events will support engagement," the analyst concludes, "while Netflix's price per hour of viewership still sits at the lower end of peers."Profit and prosper with the best of Kiplinger's advice on investing, taxes, retirement, personal finance and much more. Delivered daily. Enter your email in the box and click Sign Me Up.David Dittman is the former managing editor and chief investment strategist of Utility Forecaster, which was named one of "10 investment newsletters to read besides Buffett's" in 2015. A graduate of the University of California, San Diego, and the Villanova University School of Law, and a former stockbroker, David has been working in financial media for more than 20 years.