S&P 500 closes above 7,200; Dow up 790 points
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- S&P 500 closed at 7,209.01, up 1.02% and marking its first close above the 7,200 threshold.
- Dow Jones Industrial Average added 790.33 points (1.62%) to finish at 49,652.14, buoyed by a near‑10% jump in Caterpillar shares after strong quarterly results.
- Alphabet rose 10% after beating first‑quarter revenue expectations and expanding its 2026 capital‑expenditure guidance to as much as $190 billion, helping the Nasdaq reach a new intraday and closing record of 24,892.31.
- Oil prices reversed, with Brent down 3.41% to $114.01 and WTI down 1.69% to $105.07, after earlier gains tied to heightened U.S.–Iran tensions.
- Trump announced on Truth Social that he was preparing for an extended blockade of Iran, a geopolitical note that had earlier lifted oil prices.
- Diageo shares rose nearly 4% after Trump’s announcement to lift tariffs on Scottish whiskey, a move highlighted amid the broader market rally.
Why it matters: Investors and growth‑tech firms gain as the S&P 500 and Nasdaq break records, while the Dow’s boost from Caterpillar’s earnings lifts industrial stocks. Energy traders see a pull‑back as oil falls, and the market’s optimism persists despite lingering Iran‑related geopolitical risk.
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