US equities are putting in a better effort to rally today, after yesterday saw gains quickly fade after the Open. There were two catalysts for the strength today. The initial move on the heels of a WSJ article that said President Trump was open to ending the war without reopening the Strait of Hormuz. That gave the market another potential off-ramp it’s been looking for. Another leg higher came when Iran’s President said Iran was read to end the war but wanted guarantees.

Equities ripped higher. The S&P 500 is just off its best levels, up over 2% and making a run back to the November lows ~6550. Tech and cyclicals took the lead while Energy sold off. The move in oil is modest, however, with Brent down less than 3% and WTI less than 2%. The Russell 2000 saw gains of 4% before pulling back to current levels. This is all coming on month and Q1-end, so portfolio rebalancing and hedge positioning is also feeding into the moves. Short-covering is likely an accelerant as some of the highest beta areas are ripping- neoclouds, rare earths, quantum computers all seeing gains into the teens, if not more.

Treasuries are seeing a bid again, pushing yields down another 2-4bp across the curve, following yesterday’s move lower. The US Dollar Index slipped back below 100 as the Euro and Yen strengthened. The May ’26 Brent contract expires today with June becoming the new Front Month, which was down 3%. Bitcoin and Ether are seeing modest gains modest gains despite the sharper moves in riskier assets.