U.S. stocks surged as oil prices tumbled and traders bet a divided government would be good for business, offsetting ongoing unease about artificial-intelligence bets.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 1569.40 points, or 3.03%, to 53356.12, its largest gain since April 9, 2025. The broad S&P 500 gained 119.70 points, or 1.58%, to 7688.62 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite rose 364.50 points, or 1.44%, to 25736.51.
A slew of seat gains in the Senate and House of Representatives gave the Democratic party a dominant position in Congress. Investors wagered that President Trump and the congressional Democrats would be deadlocked on most issues, diminishing the risk of new regulations.
Stocks and Treasury bonds were also buoyed by a plunge in the price of oil as traders bet that comments from President Trump and Vice President Vance about the unpopularity of the Iran war foreshadowed an exit for U.S. troops from the Middle East.
Oil futures plummeted $7.97, or 8.3% to $88.12 a barrel in New York, completing the largest three-session percentage retreat in almost five years.
The yield on the policy-sensitive two-year Treasury fell 0.033 percentage point to 4.579%. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note dropped 0.060 percentage point to 4.891%. The yield on the 30-year bond fell 0.043 percentage point to 5.280%.
The U.S. dollar slipped against major rivals as traders weighed the implications of the retreat in oil prices for Federal Reserve monetary policy.
Dollar-sensitive gold futures gained $133.20, or 3.4% to $4061.10 a troy ounce.