The US markets ended sharply higher on Wednesday, as oil prices and Treasury yields declined amid growing optimism over a possible easing of Middle East tensions. President Trump claimed that negotiations with Iran were in the ‘final stages’ with a possible agreement to restart peace talks in sight, but the US military will have to get ‘a little bit nasty’ if no deal is reached. Traders overlooked the Energy Information Administration (EIA) released a report showed Crude oil inventory in the United States sank by 7.9 million barrels in the week ending May 15, to 445 million barrels, well above expectations of a 2.9 million draw. The reduction was combined with a 9.9 million barrel draw of the governments Strategic Petroleum Reserve, which are now 6.6% below comparable levels from the previous year as the Department of Energy mitigates the slump in global energy supply since the start of the war in Iran in March. In the meantime, gasoline stocks fell by 1.5 million barrels, and stocks of diesel inched marginally higher. Besides, minutes of the Fed’s April meeting showed policymakers are prepared to move away from an easing bias if inflation remains persistently above the central bank’s 2% target.
Nasdaq increased 399.65 points or 1.55 percent to 26,270.35, S&P 500 rose 79.36 points or 1.08 percent to 7,432.97 and Dow Jones Industrial Average was up by 645.47 points or 1.31 percent to 50,009.35.
