04:52 PM EDT, 06/18/2026 (MT Newswires) -- (Updates with index/price moves, macroeconomic data, and political/company news from the first paragraph.)

US equity indexes rose after a peace deal signed by President Donald Trump and his Iranian counterpart, Masoud Pezeshkian, led to Washington lifting its blockade of Tehran's ports on Thursday and as mega-cap semiconductor names rallied.

The Nasdaq Composite advanced 1.9% to 26,517.93, with the S&P 500 up 1.1% to 7,500.58 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average higher by 0.1% to 51,564.70 on Thursday.

Technology led the gainers, followed by consumer discretionary and communication services. Energy led the decliners.

The US on Thursday lifted its blockade of Iran, and oil tankers began freely moving through the Strait of Hormuz after months of being unable to use the critical channel, as the tentative agreement to end the war took effect, according to the Associated Press. US Vice President JD Vance said that the 60-day negotiating period between Tehran and Washington began on Thursday, Al Jazeera reported.

Iran's Supreme National Security Council says that the Persian Gulf Strait Authority has been charged with issuing permits as fast as possible for commercial vessels wishing to transit the Strait of Hormuz, the Al Jazeera report said.

Front-month global benchmark North Sea Brent shed 0.3% to $79.34 per barrel, and the US West Texas Intermediate climbed 0.3% to $76.55 per barrel. Both the WTI and Brent traded more than 2% lower earlier in the session.

The US expects "a complete ceasefire on all fronts", including Lebanon, Hezbollah, and Israel, Al Jazeera cited US President Donald Trump as saying. "We encourage everyone in the Middle East Region to maintain their commitment to allowing our negotiations to beautifully unfold."

"You can't just kill your way out of solving every single national security problem that you have," Al Jazeera cited Vance as saying in reference to Israel.

In company news, Intel ( INTC ) shares surged 11% to among the leaders on the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq, after Trump said Apple ( AAPL ) has agreed to work with Intel ( INTC ) to design and build chips in the US.

Tower Semiconductor ( TSEM ) said it shipped more than five million coherent photonic integrated circuits in partnership with Marvell Technology ( MRVL ) . Shares of Marvell ( MRVL ) jumped 7.3%, among the top gainers on the Nasdaq.

In economic news, US initial jobless claims fell to 226,000 in the week ended June 13 from an upwardly revised 230,000 in the previous week, compared with expectations for 225,000 in a survey of analysts compiled by Bloomberg.

In precious metals, gold futures slumped 3.3% to $4,238.30, while silver futures plummeted 6.7% to $66.51 as investors priced in higher interest rates this year.

On Wednesday, the Federal Reserve unanimously left its benchmark rate unchanged in the 3.50% to 3.75% range, while excluding language that suggested a lingering bias toward cuts. The probability of US interest rates rising to the 4% to 4.25% target range soared to 33% as of Thursday afternoon from 14% a week ago, implying the market doubled its outlook for two rate increases of 25 basis points each by the end of 2026, according to the CME FedWatch tool.

US Treasury yields traded mixed, with the 10-year down less than one basis point to 4.45%, while the two-year rose 1.6 basis points to $4.18%.