What we have been waiting for, Stocks rip about 2% after Trump says ’great settlement’ reached with Iran

Wall Street on Thursday soared after President Donald Trump said a “settlement of the war with Iran” had been reached and that a final document could be signed in Europe soon.

Trump had earlier called off scheduled attacks against Iran and suggested that “discussions and final points” on a peace deal with Tehran had been “approved by all parties involved.” 

Trump in the morning had further ratcheted up his rhetoric against Iran, saying the U.S. would be hitting the country “very hard” and targeting the critical Kharg Island. Conversely, media reports said de-escalation efforts were ongoing as Washington and Tehran have kept up peace talks and officials from the United Arab Emirates met with Iranian officials for the first time since the start of the conflict.

Traders also took positive cues from a key producer inflation report that came in stronger than expected on a headline basis but was soft on a core basis. 

At 15:43 ET (19:43 GMT), the benchmark S&P 500 surged 1% to 7,410.74 points, the tech-heavy NASDAQ Composite jumped 2.7% to 25,840.18 points, and the blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 2.1% to 50,962.85 points.