Wall Street edges higher on optimism over Middle East truce’s stability after Israel agrees for talks with Lebanon

Wall Street stock indices rose on Thursday as optimism regarding the Middle East truce’s stability grew after Israel announced its intention to enter direct discussions with Lebanon.

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.

As of 10 a.m. Eastern Time, the S&P 500 slipped 0.1%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.1%, and the Nasdaq Composite was 0.2% lower.

Investors are currently assessing the likelihood of a precarious ceasefire holding and the potential reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, a vital passage for rehabilitating oil and gas deliveries.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday that he has cleared the way for direct mediation "as soon as possible" with Lebanese officials. These talks are intended to focus on the disarmament of the Iranian-supported 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.

Reflecting this diplomatic progress, crude oil prices surrendered a portion of their earlier surges. The main US oil benchmark, West Texas Intermediate, rose 3.2% at $97.43 after peaking near $103 during morning trading. Brent crude, the global reference, climbed 1.4% to reach $96.01 per barrel.

The viability of the truce remains questionable, primarily due to Israel's persistent military operations against Iran-supported Hezbollah forces in Lebanon. Israeli aerial strikes on Wednesday resulted in over 200 fatalities and more than 1,000 injuries.

Furthermore, Tehran has declared its intention to collect transit fees from vessels navigating through the Hormuz passage.

"Oil prices will likely remain elevated and choppy until a more permanent agreement is struck between all parties," said Aarin Chiekrie, equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown.

In economic indicators, a report showed an underlying measure of inflation was slightly hotter in February.

A separate report said 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

Simply Good Foods stock tumbled 15.1% after the owner of Quest and Atkins brands reported 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. Amazon.com gained 1.7%.

Applied Digital shares dropped 7.1% after the data center operator's third quarter net loss widened.

Bullion Market

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.