US indices rose at the opening of trading. Markets are hoping for the war to end soon

Major U.S. stock market indexes started the April 1 trading session on the plus side after President Donald Trump signaled that he was interested in ending the conflict with Iran sooner rather than later and also said Tehran had asked for a ceasefire.

- The S&P 500 broad market index rose 0.8% before slowing to 0.5%.

- The blue-chip index Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.7% and then also trimmed gains.

- The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite jumped 0.8 percent, but was up 1.2 percent at one point.

- The VIX volatility index, known as the Wall Street fear gauge, continued the decline that began the day before. It fell another 1.8% or so, below the 25-point mark.

- June Brent crude futures fell 2.1% to trade just below $102 a barrel.

US President Donald Trump made several statements at once on Wednesday regarding the prospects of ending the war with Iran. In Truth Social, he wrote that the country's new leadership had asked him for a truce. But he added that the cessation of hostilities is only possible after the opening of the Strait of Hormuz, an important corridor for the world's oil supplies.

Then, in response to a Reuters question about when the White House would consider the conflict over, Trump said, "I can't say for sure ... we'll be out [of Iran] pretty quickly." And if necessary, the US will be able to return for "pinpoint strikes," he warned.

Late Wednesday night, the U.S. leader will deliver an address on the situation in the Middle East.

The Financial Times reported that British Prime Minister Keir Starmer plans to discuss with the foreign ministers of 35 countries this week the restoration of traffic in the Strait of Hormuz after the end of the war. The discussion will include naval operations.

The news is supplemented.

This article was AI-translated and verified by a human editor