04:53 PM EDT, 03/16/2026 (MT Newswires) -- The S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced after four straight sessions of losses as oil prices pulled back.

The S&P 500 closed 1% higher at 6,699.4 on Monday, while the Dow rose 0.8% to 46,946.4. The Nasdaq Composite gained 1.2% to settle at 22,374.2, snapping a two-day fall. All sectors ended in the green, led by technology's 1.4% jump.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil was last down 5.2% at $93.61, its first decline in the last five sessions.

The US is letting Iranian oil tankers to transit the Strait of Hormuz, the world's most important chokepoint for crude flows, CNBC reported Monday, citing Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. The strait was effectively closed after the Middle East conflict started at the end of last month.

On Saturday, US President Donald Trump pushed China, France, Japan, South Korea, and the UK to send war ships to "keep the Strait open and safe," according to his social media post.

"(Artificial intelligence) remains a structural support for equities, but oil prices are driving short-term sentiment," Saxo Bank said in a report Monday. "If oil markets stabilize, volatility may gradually decline. Continued geopolitical uncertainty, however, could keep volatility elevated."

The Strait of Hormuz's continued closure could threaten trading flows of key industrial materials including plastic and aluminum as concerns mount that supply disruptions could move beyond energy markets, Morgan Stanley said in a note.

Switching to monetary policy, the Federal Open Market Committee kicks off its two-day meeting on Tuesday, with a decision on interest rates due the following day. Markets widely expect the US central bank to keep its key lending rate unchanged for a second consecutive meeting, according to the CME FedWatch tool.

The Fed's updated economic projections will likely continue to signal one interest rate cut in 2026 amid uncertainty around the impact of the Iran war, UBS Securities said in a note e-mailed on Monday.

Powell, whose term as central bank chief ends in May, is expected to be non-committal about future policy moves, UBS Economist Jonathan Pingle said . While Powell is likely to underscore downside risks to the labor market, "the outlook for inflation probably looks worse," Pingle said.

US Treasury yields were lower, with the 10-year rate last down 5.5 basis points at 4.23% and the two-year rate falling five basis points to 3.68%.

In economic news, US homebuilder confidence rose this month despite continued affordability concerns amid elevated construction costs and shortages of labor and buildable lots, the National Association of Home Builders and Wells Fargo said.

"While the Freddie Mac 30-year fixed rate mortgage averaged 6.05% in February -- the lowest since August 2022 -- down payment hurdles and uncertainty from the conflict with Iran and the price of oil will be headwinds going forward," NAHB Chief Economist Robert Dietz said.

US industrial production increased more than expected in February, data from the Federal Reserve showed.

"Although manufacturing continues to contend with cost pressures and tariff headwinds, recent gains suggest underlying support from still-healthy demand, particularly for business equipment," Priscilla Thiagamoorthy, senior economist at BMO Capital Markets, said in a note.

A surge in energy prices in the wake of supply disruptions poses risk to industrial production ahead, Oxford Economics said in remarks e-mailed to MT Newswires.

"Manufacturing is at risk from higher energy prices, which will crimp aggregate demand via a real income shock and uncertainty," Oxford Lead US Economist Bernard Yaros said. "Output of paper, primary metals, and plastics will come under more pressure, as energy is a larger than average share of their cost structure."

In company news, Dollar Tree ( DLTR ) shares jumped 6.4%, the second-top gainer on the S&P 500. The discount retailer forecast annual growth in full-year results after its fourth-quarter profit exceeded Wall Street's expectations despite weather-related store closures.

Nebius ( NBIS ) agreed to supply artificial intelligence infrastructure to Facebook and Instagram parent Meta Platforms ( META ) in an up to $27 billion deal. The Dutch AI cloud company's US-listed shares surged 15%, while Meta rose 2.3%.

Public Storage ( PSA ) agreed to acquire smaller self-storage facilities operator National Storage Affiliates Trust ( NSA ) in an all-stock deal worth about $10.5 billion, expanding its presence in high-growth markets. National Storage shares soared 30%, while Public Storage ( PSA ) fell 1.7%.

Gold was last down 0.9% at $5,015 per troy ounce, while silver lost 0.5% to $80.98 per ounce.