Wall Street stocks rise as oil falls 6% amid cooling Middle East tensions

U.S. stock indexes opened higher on Monday, with the S&P 500 up 0.8%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average gaining 581 points and the Nasdaq Composite rising 1%. The gains followed a pause in attacks by the United States and Iran and the restart of talks on an interim cease-fire.

Brent crude fell 6.8% to around $85.5 a barrel and U.S. benchmark crude dropped 7% to about $83 a barrel, reflecting reduced geopolitical risk.

Chinese memory-chip maker CXMT surged 466% in its Shanghai debut, making it China’s most valuable listed company with a market value of roughly 3.3 trillion yuan (about $490 billion).

European markets also rose, with Germany’s DAX up 1.6%, France’s CAC 40 up 0.8% and Britain’s FTSE 100 up 0.5%. In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei 225 gained 0.5% and South Korea’s Kospi rose 1%.

"Oil’s sharp retreat at the Monday open did more than knock a few dollars off the barrel. It loosened the geopolitical knot that had been tightening around equities, currencies, bonds and central banks for most of July," said Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management.

"Oil is the fastest-moving tax in the global economy. When crude rises sharply, consumers feel it at the fuel pump, airlines and transport companies feel it in their operating costs, manufacturers feel it in their logistics, and central banks begin worrying that the initial supply shock will spill over into broader inflation expectations," Innes added.

Treasury yields fell and the U.S. dollar slipped slightly against the yen, while the euro edged higher. Investors are also watching corporate earnings, particularly in the technology sector, for signs that AI-related spending will translate into sustainable profits.