U.S. stocks finish higher as Trump says war could be over soon

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U.S. stocks finish higher as Trump says war could be over soon

2026-03-10 11:59 Last Updated At：12:59

U.S. stocks ended higher on Monday, recovering from early session heavy losses, as indications of a potential swift conclusion to the ongoing U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran triggered a sharp pullback in global oil prices.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 239.25 points or 0.5 percent, to 47,740.8. The S and P 500 added 55.97 points or 0.83 percent to 6,795.99. The Nasdaq Composite Index increased by 308.27 points or 1.38 percent, to 22,695.95.

Nine of the 11 primary S and P 500 sectors ended in the green. Technology and communication services led the gainers, advancing 1.8 percent and 1.13 percent, respectively. Meanwhile, the financials and energy sectors led the laggards, declining 0.52 percent and 0.43 percent, respectively.

The broader market turned positive in afternoon trading following remarks from U.S. President Donald Trump suggesting the war with Iran could conclude sooner than anticipated. He reportedly told a CBS journalist that "the war is very complete, pretty much."

The geopolitical developments prompted a dramatic reversal in energy markets. West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures for April delivery, which had surged past 119 U.S. dollars per barrel in overnight trading for the first time since 2022, settled at 94.77 dollars a barrel.

The sudden drop in oil prices immediately relieved travel and leisure equities, which are highly sensitive to fuel costs. Shares of major U.S. carriers, including Delta Air Lines, United Airlines, and American Airlines, alongside cruise operators such as Norwegian Cruise Line, Carnival, and Royal Caribbean, erased earlier losses to finish higher.

In the technology sector, all of the major "Magnificent Seven" stocks rebounded from early declines to post gains. Additionally, memory chip manufacturers saw significant upward movement, with SanDisk and Western Digital finishing up nearly 12 percent and 7 percent, respectively.

Despite the session's optimism, some market experts warned that investors might underestimate the risks of a broader economic recession or an equity market correction. Analysts at Deutsche Bank noted that a continuous stream of global shocks over the past four years has left investors somewhat desensitized to short-term disruptions, leaving overall equity positioning slightly below neutral.

Conversely, analysts at Morgan Stanley offered a more optimistic outlook, forecasting that U.S. equities will likely remain constructive for at least another year despite the elevated geopolitical risks. "We think we're closer to the end of this rolling correction than the beginning and remain constructive over the next 6-12 months," analysts said.

China's nuclear energy development makes great strides with three-step strategy: CPPCC member

Highlighting the "Future Energy" as a key direction for China's strategic emerging industries, the country's nuclear energy development, guided by its three-step strategy, has seen major strides in the past year, said a member of the 14th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC).

In a recent press briefing, Xin Feng, also deputy general manager of China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC), updated the media on the progresses China has achieved under the strategy.

"China's three-step strategy for nuclear energy development -- from the thermal reactor to the fast reactor and the fusion reactor -- was formulated in 1983 as a medium- and long-term plan. For the thermal reactor, over the past year, our 2.0 version of the Hualong One technology has been approved. This is a unified and fully self-owned intellectual property based third-generation nuclear power technology solution. And the Linglong One small modular reactor also successfully completed its cold-state functional test last year and is expected to be put into commercial operation this year," he said.

For the second and third steps, Chinese researchers and engineers have achieved milestones in the past year with the government support, Xin noted.

"Then for the fast reactor, last year, a closed-cycle system for an integral fast reactor successfully achieved preliminary standard design. We will continue to solve its engineering technology challenges. As for the fusion reactor, in 2025, with national support, we established the China Fusion Energy Company in Shanghai. And our Huanliu-3, a platform for conducting research and development of fusion technology, made a big stride, with an iron temperature in it achieving 117 million Celsius and an electron temperature reaching 160 million Celsius. We will continue to adhere to the development strategy and focus on technological research and engineering technology development," Xin said.

The fourth session of the 14th NPC and the fourth session of the 14th National Committee of the CPPCC kicked off in Beijing on March 5 and March 4, respectively.

The "two sessions" -- which refer to the annual meetings of China's supreme organ of state power, the National People's Congress (NPC), and its top political advisory body, the National Committee of the CPPCC -- are a key event on the country's political calendar and offer a window into the country's development direction.