(Recasts with afternoon trading, adds analyst comment and market

details throughout)

* Marvell Technology ( MRVL ) jumps after Nvidia ( NVDA ) invests $2

billion

* CoreWeave ( CRWV ) gains on $8.5 billion loan to expand AI

infrastructure

* US job openings fall more than expected in February

* S&P 500 +2.40%, Nasdaq +3.27%, Dow +2.12%

By Noel Randewich and Purvi Agarwal

March 31 (Reuters) - Wall Street surged on Tuesday,

lifted by speculation about a potential de-escalation in the

Middle East conflict that has sent oil prices soaring and fueled

fears of global inflation in recent weeks.

All three major U.S. indexes rallied after the Wall Street

Journal reported on Monday that U.S. President Donald Trump told

aides he was willing to end the military campaign against Iran,

even if the Strait of Hormuz remained largely closed.

U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the next few days in

the war against Iran would be decisive and warned Tehran that

the conflict would intensify if it did not make a deal.

The month-long war has left the S&P 500 and the Dow on track

for their deepest quarterly declines since early 2022 as

investors worry that a wave of higher fuel costs could hurt

demand for goods and services, while forcing the U.S. Federal

Reserve to raise interest rates to contain inflation.

"What you're seeing in capital markets today is speculation

around an earlier off-ramp, or a cessation of hostilities," said

Bill Northey, senior investment director at U.S. Bank Wealth

Management, in Billings, Montana.

"Details are light, but the capital markets are looking for

any indication that there is an opportunity for a more normal

flow of energy through the Strait of Hormuz."

The U.S. stock market's most valuable companies made big

gains, with Nvidia ( NVDA ) and Alphabet up over 5%,

Meta Platforms ( META ) rising 6% and Amazon ( AMZN ) gaining

over 4%.

The PHLX chip index jumped about 5%.

CoreWeave ( CRWV ) jumped 10% after securing an $8.5 billion

loan to expand AI infrastructure. Marvell Technology ( MRVL )

surged 13% after Nvidia ( NVDA ) invested $2 billion in the

firm.

Many technology stocks have taken a beating in 2026 due to

worries that Microsoft, Alphabet, Amazon ( AMZN ) and other heavyweights

may be taking too long to show results from their massive

spending in AI.

The S&P 500 jumped 2.40% to 6,496.17 points.

The Nasdaq surged 3.27% to 21,474.71 points, while the Dow

Jones Industrial Average was up 2.12% at 46,176.36 points.

Eight of the 11 S&P 500 sector indexes rose, led by

communication services, up 4.1%, followed by a 3.51%

gain in information technology.

The energy index dropped 2.1%, and remained up about

9% in March, tracking the rally in oil prices.

Last week, the Dow and the Nasdaq ended 10% below their

record-high closes, confirming they were both in corrections.

U.S. job openings fell more than expected in February and hiring

dropped to the lowest level in nearly six years, government data

showed.

The oil spike stemming from the Iran war has revived

inflation worries, and money market traders think the Fed is

more likely to raise interest rates by year-end than lower them,

according to CME Group's FedWatch Tool.

Unilever ( UL ) agreed to separate its food unit and merge it

with McCormick ( MKC ) in a cash-and-stock deal, valuing the spice maker

at about $44.8 billion. McCormick ( MKC ) shares fell 5.8%.

Constellation Energy ( CEG ) dropped almost 8% after forecasting

2026 profit below Wall Street expectations.

Advancing issues outnumbered falling ones within the S&P 500

by a 3.7-to-one ratio.

The S&P 500 posted 6 new highs and 8 new lows; the Nasdaq

recorded 32 new highs and 139 new lows.