April 2, 2026

A surge in oil prices after President Trump's remarks on the Iran War overnight led to a sharp selloff in equities today before investors jumped in and bought the drop. Crude oil prices soared +11% but diplomatic efforts to try and open the Strait of Hormuz brought traders in to buy equities and the major averages finished the session mixed. Economic data saw Initial Jobless Claims ease 9k to 202k, while Continuing Claims increased 25k. The market sectors were also mixed with REITs (XLRE), Technology (XLK), Consumer Staples (XLP) and Utilities (XLU) leading the turnaround, while Consumer Discretionary (XLY), Healthcare (XLV) and Industrial (XLI) closed lower. Private equity firms were hit again after Blue Owl Capital (OBDC) said it would limit redemptions to 5%. BlackRock (BLK), Ares Mgt (ARES) and Apollo Global Mgt (APO) all fell on the report. The major averages held on to their gains in the afternoon leaving the S&P 500 with a 7.37-point (+0.11%) gain at 6582.69, while the NASDAQ added 38.23 points (+0.18%) and settled at 21879.18. The DJIA lost 61.07 points (-0.13%) finishing at 46504.67.

Breadth was positive with advancing issues beating declining issues 1.4:1 on the NYSE and 1.3:1 on the NASDAQ. Advancing volume was 58% on the NYSE and 64% of the NASDAQ. The VIX slipped 0.67 (-2.73%) and closed at 23.87. Crude oil prices spiked 11.31 (+11.30%) and the May contract closed at $111.43 a barrel. Gold prices dropped 112.50 (-2.34%) and finished at $4700.60 an ounce. Bitcoin (BTC) closed the session at $68,860.

The NASDAQ dropped more than -2% at the open but as mentioned, investors bought the dip and rallied the tech heavy index back to the plus column in the first hour of trading. Although equities were whipsawed during the week on war headlines and changes in oil prices, the major averages managed to snap their five-week losing streak. While not out of the woods, the major averages look better after a pricing reset with Q1 earnings coming down the road in two weeks. Expect ongoing volatility around the war but it's possible the market bottomed at Monday's opening selloff. The NYSE is closed tomorrow for Good Friday, but the BLS Employment Situation report will be out at 8:30 AM ET.

Earnings releases to watch for on Friday include: N/A

Friday's Market Moving Economic Calendar: Employment Situation

*Charts of the various market timing components can be found by going to the Market Edge Home page and clicking on 'Market At A Glance', which is located on the right-hand side of the page just below the 'Market Recap' section.

Comments or questions can be sent to: support@marketedge.com