Dow Soars Over 550 Points, Crude Oil Prices Tumble To Pre-Iran War Levels — JPMorgan Hikes S&P 500 Target For 2026

• West Texas Intermediate crude futures expiring in July were down 4.75%, hovering around $69.73 a barrel, while Brent crude futures expiring in August were hovering around $74.02 per barrel.
• Trump said in a post on Truth Social that while the U.S. has not given any money to Iran yet, it would release some funds for the purchase of agricultural produce from the United States for Iran.
• Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said his department will manage Iranian funds to be released under the interim peace deal with the country.

U.S. equities soared in Wednesday morning’s trade after crude oil prices fell to pre-Iran war levels as President Donald Trump announced that Iran is not charging tolls in the Strait of Hormuz.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) soared more than 550 points, hovering around 52,248 points and inching close to its 52-week high of 52,281. The S&P 500 index gained about 0.8%, while the Nasdaq Composite rose nearly 0.7%.

Trump said in a post on Truth Social that while the U.S. has not given any money to Iran yet, it would release some funds for the purchase of agricultural produce from the United States for Iran.

“Food is desperately needed in Iran, and we will be purchasing it for them exclusively from the United States,” he said.

Crude Oil Prices Tumble

Crude oil prices tumbled on Wednesday to pre-Iran war levels for the first time. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures expiring in July were down 4.75%, hovering around $69.73 a barrel. Brent crude futures expiring in August fell 3.62% to hover around $74.02 a barrel.

The United States Oil Fund ETF (USO) fell more than 4% at the time of writing, while the ProShares Ultra Bloomberg Crude Oil ETF (UCO) declined about 7%.

Bessent Says Treasury Will Manage Iranian Funds Under Peace Deal

During an interview with CNBC, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said that his department will manage Iranian funds that will be released under the interim peace deal with the country. He also said that a large portion of the funds released by the U.S. to Iran would go into purchasing food and medicine supplies from the United States.

“Any money that the Iranians get is going to be used, first, for the benefit of the Iranian people,” he added.

JPMorgan Hikes 2026 S&P 500 Target

Meanwhile, JPMorgan hiked its S&P 500 target for 2026 to 7,800 from 7,200, implying an upside potential of more than 5% from current levels.

According to a CNBC report citing a note from the firm, JPMorgan strategist Dubravko Lakos-Bujas said that U.S. stocks are heading towards a “Blue Sky” scenario as the United States and Iran inch closer to a peace deal.

“However, it’s important to keep in mind that the path upwards will likely be non-linear, as the market will need to clear various hurdles,” Lakos-Bujas added.

At the time of writing, the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY), which tracks the S&P 500 index, gained 0.73%; the Invesco QQQ Trust ETF (QQQ) was up 0.5%; and the SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF Trust (DIA) rose 0.98%. Retail sentiment on Stocktwits regarding the S&P 500 ETF was in the ‘bearish’ territory.

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