Dow Climbs 410 Points as Iran Signals It Wants to Talk

Wall Street punched the green button at Monday's opening bell. The Dow Jones rallied 410 points, or 0.79%, right out of the gate. The Nasdaq 100 climbed 0.68% at 9:30 am ET, and the S&P 500 added 0.47%. The euro also firmed, trading 0.53% above the dollar at 1.12178 by 9:29 am ET.

The trigger came from Tehran. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei granted his administration "certain authorities" to handle peace negotiations. Tehran is insisting it wants "to resolve the problem with dialogue" — a line that lit up hopes for a breakthrough with Washington.

The move wasn't a surprise to anyone watching the pre-market. Futures had already pointed up, with the Dow ahead by 200 points, or 0.38%, at 4:13 am ET. The Nasdaq 100 was up 218 points, or 0.76%, and the S&P 500 had gained 0.41%. The euro was even stronger earlier, up 0.63% against the dollar at 1.12303.

Monday's slate is stacked. Fox reports before the opening bell, while Apple and Palantir step up after the close. Traders also get manufacturing PMI numbers and the construction spending release to chew on between earnings.

The rally lands on a bruised tape. Friday's session closed lower as investors chewed through earnings and watched tech names slide, with Intel plunging more than 30% on a weak fourth-quarter forecast. The Nasdaq had been hovering near its lowest level since early August, and chipmakers finished the week in the red.

Now the question is whether Tehran's talk of dialogue holds up, and whether earnings can keep the bounce alive. More to come.