Late Tuesday, U.S. stock futures moved higher and oil prices stayed elevated as President Donald Trump signaled a potential end to military operations in Iran within weeks.
Markets Rise As Investors Bet On De-Escalation
At the time of writing, Dow futures rose 96 points, or 0.21%, to 46,678.00, while S&P 500 futures gained 21.50 points, or 0.33%, to 6,592.25. Nasdaq 100 futures climbed 116.50 points, or 0.49%, to 24,031.50.
In commodities, WTI crude futures advanced 0.59% to $101.98 per barrel, while natural gas futures declined 0.59% to $2.867 per MMBtu.
Meanwhile, the U.S. dollar index was at 99.819, down 0.04%.
Asian markets were sharply higher, with Japan’s Nikkei 225 rising 3.82% to 53,013.33, while South Korea’s KOSPI surged 5.40% to 5,325.37.
Trump Signals Possible Exit From Iran
Speaking at the White House, Trump suggested the U.S. could soon wind down its military campaign, Reuters reported.
"We'll be leaving very soon," he said, adding the withdrawal could happen "within two weeks, maybe two weeks, maybe three."
Notably, Trump said Iran would not need to agree to U.S. terms for the conflict to end.
"Iran doesn’t have to make a deal, no," he stated, adding, "No, they don’t have to make a deal with me."
The comments marked a shift from earlier U.S. demands that Tehran halt uranium enrichment and commit to broader restrictions as part of a ceasefire framework.
Mixed Signals As Talks Continue
Earlier in the day, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said discussions with Iran were progressing but warned the U.S. remained prepared to escalate if necessary, the report added.
"We have more and more options and they have less" he said, adding that the coming days would be "decisive."
Iran, however, has previously downplayed the exchanges, saying they did not amount to formal negotiations.
Corporate Threats And Global Tensions Rise
On Tuesday, Iran's Revolutionary Guard issued fresh threats targeting U.S. companies operating in the region, warning of potential action beginning Wednesday.
The group named 18 firms, including Microsoft Corp (NASDAQ:MSFT), Palantir Technologies (NASDAQ:PLTR), Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) (NASDAQ:GOOGL), Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL), Intel Corp (NASDAQ:INTC), Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) and Boeing Co (NYSE:BA), saying they could be targeted starting at 8 p.m. Tehran time (1630 GMT).
When asked about the threats, Trump dismissed the concerns, saying Iran had limited capacity to follow through.
Despite this, by midday Tuesday, U.S. stocks were broadly higher, with all major indexes trading solidly in positive territory.
Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
Image via Shutterstock/ Joey Sussman