Major U.S. stock indices closed higher on Wednesday. Market participants monitored the latest developments in Middle Eastern tensions, as the White House indicated peace talks with Iran are ongoing, although Tehran publicly rejected U.S. proposals and set conditions for ending the conflict.
In the U.S. market, the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 305.43 points, or 0.66%, to close at 46,429.49. The Nasdaq Composite rose 167.93 points, or 0.77%, to finish at 21,929.83. The S&P 500 index advanced 35.53 points, or 0.54%, settling at 6,591.90. PDD Holdings Inc surged over 4%, while Amazon.com and NVIDIA each gained 2%. Advanced Micro Devices and Intel both climbed 7%. The Nasdaq Golden Dragon China Index increased by 1.85%, with JD.com jumping 8% and Alibaba rising 3.5%.
In European markets, Germany's DAX 30 index increased by 337.33 points, or 1.49%, to 22,977.22. The UK's FTSE 100 index advanced 146.91 points, or 1.47%, to 10,112.07. France's CAC 40 index rose 102.63 points, or 1.33%, to 7,846.55. The Euro Stoxx 50 index gained 71.81 points, or 1.29%, closing at 5,653.10. Spain's IBEX 35 index added 276.25 points, or 1.63%, to 17,186.45. Italy's FTSE MIB index climbed 671.97 points, or 1.55%, to 44,041.50.
In the cryptocurrency sector, Bitcoin rose over 1% to $71,079, while Ethereum increased 0.96% to $2,166.16. Vetle Lunde, Head of Research at K33, noted that Bitcoin has been trading sideways between $60,000 and $75,000 in recent weeks, indicating stabilization in exchange-traded product volumes and long-term holder behavior. He described this price action as "typically associated with market bottoms" and suggested the low-$70,000 range might be attractive for medium to long-term investors. According to Lunde, Bitcoin ETF flows have turned slightly positive since late February, signaling that the selling pressure following October's all-time high may be subsiding. He attributed previous outflows to profit-taking when prices fell below investor cost bases, creating a supply-demand feedback loop. However, as prices decline, the incentive to sell diminishes, allowing demand to stabilize.
Crude oil prices declined. The May delivery contract for West Texas Intermediate crude fell $2.03, or 2.2%, settling at $90.32 per barrel. The May contract for Brent crude dropped $2.27, or 2.17%, closing at $102.22 per barrel.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the dollar against a basket of six major currencies, increased 0.18% to settle at 99.614. By the close of New York forex trading, one euro traded at $1.1578, up from $1.1569 the previous session. One British pound traded at $1.3382, up from $1.3366. The dollar bought 159.28 Japanese yen, compared to 159.14 yen previously. It traded at 0.7910 Swiss francs, down from 0.7918, and at 1.3808 Canadian dollars, up from 1.3783. The dollar exchanged for 9.3320 Swedish krona, down from 9.3669.
In metals trading, spot gold reclaimed the $4,500 per ounce level, while spot silver traded at $71.262 per ounce.
On the macroeconomic front, the U.S. government waived summer gasoline sales restrictions to address soaring fuel prices. The Environmental Protection Agency issued an emergency waiver lifting sales limitations on E15 gasoline, which contains 15% ethanol. To reduce air pollution, authorities typically restrict E15 sales from June through September. The EPA also issued a waiver removing all federal-level barriers to selling E10 gasoline, a blend containing 10% ethanol. These waivers will take effect on May 1.
In political developments, Senate Republicans rejected the latest Democratic proposal to end the Homeland Security Department shutdown, prolonging a stalemate that has severely disrupted air travel. Majority Leader John Thune stated the proposal "wasn't even real," describing it as a list of nine demands including requiring law enforcement to stop using masks and begin using judicial search warrants. Democrats have not publicly detailed their proposal but have previously called for enhanced training for immigration officers, expanded use of body cameras, and badges clearly displaying officers' names. Thune indicated he would not accept any policy changes to immigration enforcement unless a funding agreement also provided money for these activities.
The White House is arranging a meeting in Pakistan this weekend to discuss a ceasefire plan. Two senior U.S. officials disclosed that the administration is working to organize a meeting to discuss an "exit strategy" for the U.S. conflict with Iran. According to reports, Vice President Vance will travel to Pakistan, with other senior officials potentially joining. Specific timing, location, and participant details remain fluid, and the meeting could alternatively be held in Turkey. The report did not mention whether Iranian representatives might attend the ceasefire talks.
Regarding individual company news, MicroStrategy announced it will launch a dedicated Bitcoin security initiative aimed at collaborating with global experts in cybersecurity, cryptocurrency, and Bitcoin to enhance the network's security, resilience, and credibility. The company is hiring a Director of Bitcoin Security to lead this effort. The role will serve as the internal authority on protocol, cryptography, and asset custody, while acting as a key external industry liaison. This position will comprehensively build MicroStrategy's Bitcoin security framework, covering threat modeling, key management, multi-signature custody solutions, and wallet architecture, with a focus on institutional-grade resilience and asset recoverability. The initiative will bring together exchanges, custodians, asset managers, service providers, and core developers to address emerging threats, security vulnerabilities, and establish industry best practices. It will also include internal training, executive consulting, and ongoing industry collaboration, with regular meetings and public progress updates to drive scalable improvements in Bitcoin security.
A U.S. jury found Meta Platforms and Alphabet's Google liable and ordered them to pay compensation to a 20-year-old woman who alleged she became addicted to their social media platforms, leading to a mental health crisis. The jury determined Meta must pay at least $2.1 million for the plaintiff's losses, including treatment costs, while Google must pay at least $900,000. The jury will hear further arguments to decide whether to award punitive damages against the companies. This is the first case of its kind to reach trial and is seen as a key test of novel legal arguments underlying numerous lawsuits filed against Meta, Google, and Snap over the past three years. These suits allege the platforms' designs themselves cause harm to young users, rather than their content. Two other bellwether cases are scheduled for trial later this year in California state court. If the companies lose, it could prompt settlement negotiations.
CrowdStrike announced an expansion of its strategic collaboration with Intel to protect the next generation of AI PCs. Reported at the 2026 RSA Conference, the partnership involves optimizing CrowdStrike's Falcon platform for Intel AI PCs, helping enterprises counter threats arising from the shift of AI computing to endpoints and protecting sensitive data. AI PCs enable AI assistants to process sensitive data directly on devices, expanding the attack surface and introducing new risks. The collaboration combines the Falcon platform's capabilities with the device-side AI acceleration of Intel's CPUs, GPUs, and NPUs to enable real-time threat detection and data protection for AI workflows. Key advantages include protecting sensitive data in AI workflows, hardware-accelerated threat interception, unified correlation of threat behaviors, and enhanced device resilience and recovery capabilities for enterprises. Executives from both companies stated the partnership will synchronize security protection with AI computing without impacting device performance, accelerating the deployment of endpoint AI security.