US stocks rally as pressure eases from the bond market and oil prices fall

NEW YORK (AP) — The U.S. stock market is bouncing back Wednesday after pressure eased on Wall Street from the bond market and oil prices gave back some of their big gains.

The S&P 500 climbed 0.9% toward its first rise in four days and pulled closer to its all-time high set last week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 484 points, or 1%, as of noon Eastern time, and the Nasdaq composite was 1.3% higher.

Stocks got a lift from easing yields in the bond market, a relief following rapid climbs that had rattled stock markets worldwide recently. The yield on the 10-year Treasury fell to 4.58% from 4.67% late Tuesday, which is a significant move for a market that measures things in hundredths of a percentage point.

The 10-year Treasury yield had been rising from less than 4% before the war with Iran began, along with other yields around the world, because of worries that the fighting will keep oil prices high, among other factors. The inflation worries not only seemed to eliminate the chances that the Federal Reserve could cut interest rates this year, they also heightened the risk that central banks may have to raise rates in 2026.

High yields slow economies and weigh on prices for stocks, cryptocurrencies and all kinds of other investments. Besides driving up rates for mortgages, they could also curtail companies' borrowing to build the artificial-intelligence data centers that have been supporting the U.S. economy's growth recently.

Yields eased Wednesday as oil prices pulled back some more. The price for a barrel of Brent crude fell 5.2% to $105.45, though it remains well above its roughly $70 level from before the war. Prices have been yo-yoing on rising and falling hopes that the United States and Iran can reach an agreement to allow oil deliveries to fully resume from the Persian Gulf to customers worldwide.

A report showing less bad inflation in the United Kingdom than economists expected also helped calm yields worldwide.

With the easing of yields, technology stocks helped lead Wall Street higher.

Nvidia rose 2% and was the strongest force lifting the S&P 500. It's set to report its latest quarterly results after trading ends for the day, which will likely be the market's main event. The chip company has routinely blown past analysts’ profit expectations each quarter thanks to voracious demand for AI, and how it does could determine whether AI stocks and the larger U.S. market can maintain their record-setting rally.

Other tech stocks leading the market Thursday included Advanced Micro Devices, up 8.3%, and Intel, up 6.3%.

Smaller companies can feel even bigger relief from lower yields than their bigger rivals because many need to borrow to grow. The Russell 2000 index of the smallest U.S. stocks jumped 2.3%, more than double the gain of the S&P 500, which measures the biggest U.S. stocks.

Also helping to drive the market was the company behind TJ Maxx, Marshalls and other stores, which climbed 6.2% after delivering stronger profit and revenue for the latest quarter than analysts expected. TJX's CEO, Ernie Herrman, said the current quarter is off to a good start, and the off-price retailer raised its forecasts for revenue and profit this year.

Red Robin Gourmet Burgers jumped 21.8%, and Cava Group rallied 4.2% following their own better-than-expected profit reports. Such results raise hopes that households can keep spending and driving the economy, even though they’re contending with high gasoline prices and widespread discouragement about economic conditions.

Most big U.S. companies have likewise reported better profits for the start of 2026 than analysts expected, which has helped stocks run to records. Stock prices tend to follow the path of corporate profits over the long term.

On the losing side of Wall Street was Target, which fell 3.6% even though the retailer reported better profit and revenue for the latest quarter than analysts expected. A new CEO, Michael Fiddelke, is trying to turn around the company and boost its revenue.

Expectations may have been even higher for the company’s performance after Target’s stock came into the day with a gain of more than 30% for the year so far, quadruple the S&P 500’s gain.

In stock markets abroad, indexes rallied in Europe following weaker finishes across Asia. Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 fell 1.2% as the yield on the 10-year Japanese government bond slipped but remained near its highest level since 1997.

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AP Business Writers Matt Ott and Elaine Kurtenbach contributed.