Traders work on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange, March 17, 2026.
Brendan McDermid | Reuters
The S&P 500 rose on Tuesday as Wall Street built on the momentum seen in the previous session amid developments in the Iran war.
The broad market index closed up 0.25% at 6,716.09, and the Nasdaq Composite climbed 0.47% to finish at 22,479.53. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 46.85 points, or 0.1%, to end at 46,993.26.
Volatile oil prices and the fallout of the Iran war continue to influence investor sentiment. On Tuesday, oil prices resumed their ascent, with global benchmark Brent crude rising 3% — solidly above the $100 mark.
Despite the rise in oil prices, the S&P 500’s consumer discretionary group was notably up 1% on the day, led by gains in Expedia Group and Booking Holdings. Strong revenue guidance from airlines Delta and American boosted those names. The sector is down more than 2% this month, however.
Energy was the index’s leading sector, adding just above 1%. The move puts its month-to-date gains at more than 4%.
Oil prices
Oil’s bounce came after PresidentDonald Trumpsuggested on Monday that a coalition to protect shipping along the Strait of Hormuz isstill in the works. Then, on Tuesday, Trump said in a Truth Social post that the U.S. did not need help from NATO or other countries to carry out the escort plans.
“Fortunately, we have decimated Iran’s Military,” Trump said in the post. “Because of the fact that we have had such Military Success, we no longer “need,” or desire, the NATO Countries’ assistance — WE NEVER DID.”
Stocks eased from their highs following the post while crude ticked higher, suggesting investors hoped a coalition would take place.
“Investors remain hopeful that a quick and relatively painless solution to the situation will be found, and that it will prove to be the latest in a long, relatively unbroken series of dip-buying opportunities,” said Steve Sosnick, chief strategist at Interactive Brokers. “There is also a fair degree of residual FOMO, which is why … small bounces morph into relatively substantial upward moves, even if a fundamental reason appears to be lacking.”
Oil prices have surged since the start of theU.S.-Israel attacks on Iran on worries that a prolonged closure of the Strait of Hormuz could lead to a global disruption of energy supplies.
Wall Street is watching for further developments on the war, especially after Iran’s security chief, Ali Larijani, was killed in airstrikes overnight. That’s according to Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz.
“Market participants may be assuming this is very similar to the Liberation Day tariffs imposed by the U.S., and that this will be a short-lived problem that ends once the U.S. chooses to withdraw from the military conflict,” said Kristina Hooper, chief market strategist at Man Group. “I think that is a mistaken assumption. Tariffs are a relatively simple problem for markets because they can be unilaterally withdrawn whenever the U.S. chooses to do so. Wars, unlike tariffs, cannot be turned on and turned off like a switch.”
Stocks finish higher
U.S. equities finished Tuesday’s session in the green.
The S&P 500 rose 0.25% to end the day at 6,716.09, while the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.47% to 22,479.53. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 46.85 points, or 0.1%, to 46,993.26.
— Sean Conlon
Trade Desk sheds 7% after Publicis Groupe pulls its endorsement of ad-tech firm’s demand-side platform
Trade Desk dropped roughly 7% on Tuesday, shortly after Adage reported that Publicis Groupe said it would no longer recommend the advertising technology’s firm demand-side platform for digital media due to failed negotiations over its audit findings.
Publicis reportedly told its clients that a recently commissioned audit revealed “multiple violations of the master service agreement it has in place with…Trade Desk,” per the report published on Tuesday.
The report comes as the demand-side platform provider continues to take a beating alongside other software tools stocks due to investors’ concerns over disruption risks posed to the sector by artifical intelligence. Trade Desk’s stock has plunged 55% over the past year.
— Liz Napolitano
Fed looks set to hold rates on Wednesday, predicts Apollo’s Slok
Apollo Global Management’s Chief Economist Torsten Slok said the Federal Reserve will likely be concerned about the inflation side of its dual mandate as the Federal Open Market Committee’s March meeting gets underway Tuesday.
In an appearance on CNBC’s “Squawk on the Street,” Slok explained that with core PCE inflation up 3.1% annually in January, prices were already moving in the wrong direction of the Fed’s 2% inflation target. Now, with higher oil prices joining that picture along with an expected boost to growth from stimulus in President Donald Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill,” the case for holding rates steady is stronger.
“We just had 10 members out of the 12 voting members on the FOMC vote that they thought that interest rates should not go down,” referencing the vote in the committee’s January meeting, “it’s likely that they will also come to this meeting and say, ‘if anything, the risk to inflation after last meeting have actually gone more to the upside,” Slok said.
He added he believes the stalling labor market is still more due to reduced immigration on the supply side, rather than weaker demand for workers. The Fed will deliver a decision on interest rates on Wednesday.
— Davis Giangiulio
Amazon reportedly says AI will double AWS sales
Amazon CEO Adam Jassy said in an internal meeting that he projects artificial intelligence will help Amazon Web Services double its previously forecasted sales estimates, according to a Reuters report.
Reuters said Jassy told staff on Tuesday he thinks AWS sales could rise to $600 billion over the next 10 years, adding that he previously estimated that figure was closer to $300 billion.
Amazon shares rose to session highs on the news of the report, up 1.3%
— Davis Giangiulio
SoFi Technologies shares slide 5% after Muddy Waters takes short position in stock
SoFi Technologies fell roughly 5% on Tuesday after Muddy Waters Research reported that it had taken a short position in the stock.
In a note to clients, Muddy Waters called the fintech platform a “financial engineering treadmill,” pointing to SoFi’s alleged manipulation of the rates and financing strategies that undergird its loans. The research firm added that SoFi’s shares appear to be “incessantly diluted,” in addition to raising concerns over the company’s balance sheet.
“We believe SOFI is a financial engineering treadmill—not a healthy origination business,” Muddy Waters researchers said in their note to clients. “SOFI shareholders are incessantly diluted so management can hit bonus targets through GE Capital-style loan marks and Enron-esque off-balance-sheet structures that disguise borrowings as revenue.
SoFi did not immediately reply to CNBC’s request for comment.
Researchers also noted that SoFi’s financial reporting seems to include a material misstatement of at least $312 million of unrecorded debt. “If we are correct, it raises the possibility that there are more extensive misstatements we have not detected,” they added.
— Liz Napolitano
Swarmer makes stock market debut, shares skyrocket by over 400%
Drone technology company Swarmer skyrocketed by over 400% after its stock market debut.
The stock opened at $12.50, up 60% from its initial public offering price of $5.
Founded in 2023, the defense company develops autonomous drone software, which supports Ukraine’s combat missions.
Lucid Capital Markets acted as the IPO’s sole underwriter.
SWMR intra-day chart
— Itzel Franco
Consumer discretionary stocks rally despite rise in oil prices
The consumer discretionary sector is trading higher on Tuesday, led by a rally in travel booking stocks, despite an uptick in oil prices.
Expedia rose nearly 6% on the day, while Booking Holdings and MGM Resorts International gained roughly 4% each.
The rally came after American Airlines and Delta Air Lines raised on Tuesday their forward guidance for the current quarter. Delta is forecasting a high-single-digit percentage growth in revenue in the first quarter, adding to its expectations of an up to 7%increase in salesduring the same period. Meanwhile, American Airlinesis predicting it will notch a more than 10% increase in total revenue, up from its previous expectations of 7% to 10%, due to stronger-than-expected demand, according to a recent securities filing from the firm.
Historically, consumer spending and oil prices have been linked, with shoppers increasing their spending on a variety of good and services when oil prices trend lower, according to Kansas City Federal Reserve economists.
— Liz Napolitano
Energy companies and ETFs reach new highs amid U.S-Iran war
Thomas Fuller | SOPA Images | Lightrocket | Getty Images
Energy companies and ETFs are reaching new highs as the U.S.-Iran war continues. APA and BP jumped by nearly 3% while ConocoPhillips, Coterra Energy and Devon Energy rose by 1%. Each oil company also reached a 52-week high. The XOP, FCG, IXC, VDE and XLE energy ETFs were up over 1% with 52-week highs. The last three funds also reached their all-time highs.
APA and BP 5-day chart
— Itzel Franco
NYSE advancers lead decliners 4-1
Advancers had the upper hand in early trading at the New York Stock Exchange, with roughly four stocks trading higher for every one decliner. Overall, 1,939 NYSE-listed names climbed, while 590 stocks fell, according to FactSet.
— Fred Imbert
Bank of America reiterates buy rating for SAP, calls AI disruption fears “overstated”
The headquarters of German software giant SAP is pictured in Walldorf, southwestern Germany, on Feb. 25, 2026.
Kirill Kudryavtsev | AFP | Getty Images
Bank of America reiterated Tuesday its buy rating on German software stock SAP, citing its “defensive business profile,” per its analysts’ new note to clients.
The bank has a $308 price target on shares, suggesting 60.7% upside from Monday’s close.
“We reiterate our Buy rating on SAP into Q1s. Although we do expect the current
geopolitical uncertainty to modestly impact Q1 bookings, results should illustrate SAP’s
defensive business profile, with top line to accelerate to 11.5% driving 15% EBIT growth,” Bank of America analyst Frederic Boulan said Tuesday in the note.
The analyst added that concerns over the disruption risks posed by artificial intelligence are “overstated.”
SAP has declined nearly 29% over the past year. Its value has fallen amid a broader decline in software stocks fueled by AI disruption fears.
— Liz Napolitano
Stocks open higher
U.S. equities rose on Tuesday morning.
The S&P 500 rose 0.5%, while the Nasdaq Composite climbed 0.4%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 329 points, or 0.7%.
— Sean Conlon
The U.S. dollar has risen in the wake of the Iran war – will its run last?
The dollar was weaker on Tuesday ahead of a slate of central bank meetings that will likely see a rate cut in the U.S. and as investors kept a wary eye on President Donald Trump’sAsia tour, hoping for a trade deal with China.
Nurphoto | Nurphoto | Getty Images
The U.S. dollar has enjoyed a reprieve in recent weeks, strengthening against all major currencies and once again regaining its place as a safe-haven asset in times of market stress.
But analysts warn it will likely be short-lived.
During the first half of 2025, the dollar posted its worst performance in over 50 years after U.S. President Donald Trump walked back his “liberation day” tariffs announced in April, rattling faith in U.S. assets.
The dollar index, which tracks its performance against a basket of major currencies, fell almost 10% through 2025, ending a “15-year bull cycle,” Morgan Stanley said in an August research note.
But its fortunes have turned since the Iran war began. The U.S. is a key exporter of oil, and the spike in the price of WTI crude has increased demand for its currency, as oil is priced in dollars.The index is now just below 10-month highs. Read more.
Dollar index since Iran war began
— Joseph Wilkins
Morgan Stanley upgrades Lemonade
Lemonadestands to benefit from its improving positioning in autonomous auto insurance, according to Morgan Stanley.
The bank upgraded the insurance stock to overweight from equal weight. Analyst Bob Jian Huang’s new price target of $85, up from $80, corresponds to a rally ahead of 47% from Monday’s close.
Huang wrote that autonomous driving vehicles will likely reshape how auto insurance is underwritten over time. As autonomous vehicles reset some insurers’ competitive advantages, Jiang believes that new winners, such as Lemonade, will likely emerge in the industry. He wrote that he has grown more positive about Lemonade’s competitive positioning.
The move comes after Lemonade announced its after he analyst pointed to Lemonade’sAutonomous Car insurance partnership with Tesla. The deal offers Tesla owners 50% off every mile driven using Full Self-Driving technology and does not sacrifice underwriting discipline.
LMND, 1-day
CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here.
— Lisa Kailai Han
Nvidia, Delta Air Lines, Exxon Mobil among the stocks making moves before the bell
Check out the companies making the biggest moves premarket:
- Nvidia — The chipmaker traded slightly higher after CEO Jensen Huang said he expects orders for its Blackwell and Vera Rubin chips to reach $1 trillion through 2027.
- Delta Air Lines — Shares traded more than 4% higher after the company raised its first-quarter revenue growth guidance, calling for high single-digit expansion. The airline previously called for growth between 5% and 7%.
- Oil stocks — The group rose as crude prices resumed their march higher, with traders casting doubt around a U.S.-backed plan to escort tankers through the Strait of Hormuz. Exxon Mobil was up around 1%, while Occidental Petroleum gained 1.4%. The State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLE) also advanced 1%.
Read the full list here.
— Fred Imbert
Delta rises on strong Q1 guidance
A Delta Airlines plane approaches Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport for landing in Phoenix, Arizona.
Ronen Tivony | Nurphoto | Getty Images
Delta Air Lines traded more than 4% higher after the company raised its first-quarter revenue growth guidance, calling for high single-digit expansion. The airline previously called for growth between 5% and 7%.
DAL 5-day chart
— Fred Imbert
Asia-Pacific markets open higher; oil jumps over 2%
Asia-Pacific markets jumped on Tuesday as investors monitor the latest developments in the Iran war, with U.S. President Donald Trump looking to delay his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping by “a month or so” due to the Middle East conflict.
Trump was expected to travel to China at the end of March.
Oil prices jumped over 2% on Tuesday as uncertainty lingered over a U.S.-led coalition for securing the Strait of Hormuz for safe transit of energy tankers.
International benchmark Brent crude gained 2.45% to $102.57 per barrel, while the U.S.West Texas Intermediaterose 2.51% to $95.85 per barrel as of 8:44 p.m. ET.
Australia’sS&P/ASX 200 added 0.27%. Australia’s central bank is expected to raise rates for a second straight time, pushing its key policy rate to 4.1%, the highest since April 2025, according to Reuters estimates.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 added 0.75%, while the Topix jumped more than 1%. South Korea’s Kospi rose 2.94%, while the small-cap Kosdaq added 1.53%.
Hong Kong Hang Seng index rose 0.94%, while mainland CSI 300 gained 0.28%.
— Lee Ying Shan
Trump says he thinks he will have the ‘honor’ of ‘taking Cuba’
U.S. President Donald Trump gestures in front of a model aircraft commemorating “Operation Midnight Hammer”, according to its inscription, during an event to sign an executive order creating an anti‑fraud task force headed by U.S. Vice President JD Vance in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., March 16, 2026.
Jonathan Ernst | Reuters
President Donald Trump on Monday said he thinks he will have the “honor” of “taking Cuba,” further supporting his aggressive foreign policy amid the ongoing war in Iran and after the U.S. military operation in Venezuela.
“Whether I free it, take it, I think I can do anything I want with it,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office with Vice President JD Vance standing behind him. “They’re a very weakened nation right now.”
Trump earlier this month threatened a “friendly takeover” of Cuba, which has been an adversary of the U.S. for decades except for a brief thaw when Barack Obama was president.
— Garrett Downs, Pia Singh
Nvidia bets big on orbital data centers with new Vera Rubin Space-1 chip system
Nvidia CEO Jensen Hwang introduces Vera Rubin, a next-generation AI data center platform, and Rubin Ultra, a next-generation AI GPU architecture, during the keynote address at the company’s annual GTC developers conference in San Jose, California, on March 16, 2026.
Josh Edelson | AFP | Getty Images
Nvidiajust unveiled its new computing platform fororbital data centers, marking a significant step towards building AI space infrastructure.
“Space computing, the final frontier, has arrived,” CEOJensen Huang said Monday during the company’s annual GTC 2026conference. “As we deploy satellite constellations and explore deeper into space, intelligence must live wherever data is generated.”
The company said in a press release that itsVera Rubin Space-1Module, which includes the IGX Thor and Jetson Orin, will be used on space missions led by multiple companies. The chips are specifically “engineered for size-, weight- and power-constrained environments.”
Huang said Nvidia is working with partners on a new computer for orbital data centers, but there are still engineering hurdles to overcome. Partners includeAxiom Space,StarcloudandPlanet.
“In space, there’s no convection, there’s just radiation,” Huang said during his GTC keynote, “and so we have to figure out how to cool these systems out in space, but we’ve got lots of great engineers working on it.”
Nvidia’s ambitions to build data centers in space come just a few months after Nvidia-backed Starcloud successfully launched a satellite with a H100 graphics processing unit.
— Lola Murti, Pia Singh
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