* Iran seizes ships in Strait of Hormuz

* CEOs voice concerns over prolonged, elevated energy

prices

* Gold advances as easing geopolitical tensions reduce

liquidation pressures

(Updates to U.S. markets open)

By Stephen Culp

NEW YORK, April 22 (Reuters) - Wall Street stocks

advanced on Wednesday following U.S. President Donald Trump's

unilaterally declared ceasefire extension, and oil resumed its

upward climb after Iran challenged the fragile truce by seizing

two cargo ships in the Strait of Hormuz.

All three major U.S. stock indexes were lifted by a broad

rally, while gold advanced and U.S. Treasury yields dipped.

"Things are kind of quieting down, and (investors) can focus

on the economy and earnings for a little while, and not worry

about bombs flying in the Middle East for now," said Paul Nolte,

senior wealth advisor & market strategist at Murphy & Sylvest in

Elmhurst, Illinois. "There's still some concern that, yes,

there's a ceasefire, but it's not resolved.

"All it does is postpone a decision."

Iran's Revolutionary Guards seized two vessels for maritime

violations just hours after Trump agreed to extend the ceasefire

until negotiations are concluded.

U.S. stocks, initially battered by the war on Iran, have since

made a full recovery, with the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq having

reached all-time closing highs in recent sessions. But

geopolitical uncertainty lingers and a prolonged period of

elevated oil prices remains a threat; about two-thirds of the

S&P 500 companies that have reported quarterly earnings since

the beginning of April have voiced concerns about energy prices

in their analyst conference calls, according to a Reuters review

of transcripts.

First-quarter earnings season is well underway amid lofty

expectations. Analysts currently estimate year-on-year S&P 500

earnings growth of 14.4% for the January-March period, according

to the most recent LSEG data.

But the first quarter predates the Iran war.

"I don't think we're going to feel the war's full impact on

earnings until we get second quarter reports in July," Nolte

added.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 364.21 points, or

0.75%, to 49,513.59, the S&P 500 rose 59.43 points, or

0.84%, to 7,123.44 and the Nasdaq Composite rose 283.12

points, or 1.17%, to 24,543.08.

European shares were slightly lower following the extension

of the U.S.-Iran truce as Middle East strife continued to weigh

on markets and investors assessed corporate earnings.

Dozens of international firms have withdrawn guidance or

signaled price hikes since the conflict began.

MSCI's gauge of stocks across the globe rose

3.98 points, or 0.37%, to 1,070.44.

The pan-European STOXX 600 index fell 0.23%, while

Europe's broad FTSEurofirst 300 index fell 6.06 points,

or 0.25%.

Emerging market stocks fell 8.34 points, or 0.52%, to

1,607.14. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside

Japan closed lower by 0.57%, to 822.53, while

Japan's Nikkei rose 236.69 points, or 0.40%, to

59,585.86.

The dollar inched higher against the euro amid lingering

geopolitical worries.

The dollar index, which measures the greenback against a

basket of currencies including the yen and the euro, rose 0.06%

to 98.44, with the euro down 0.11% at $1.1728.

Against the Japanese yen, the dollar weakened 0.09% to

159.23.

In cryptocurrencies, bitcoin gained 3.97% to $78,750.99.

Ethereum rose 3.57% to $2,400.37.

U.S. Treasury yields dipped as investors remained cautious

following the ceasefire extension.

The yield on benchmark U.S. 10-year notes fell 0.6

basis points to 4.286%, from 4.292% late on Tuesday.

The 30-year bond yield fell 0.9 basis points to

4.8887% from 4.898% late on Tuesday.

The 2-year note yield, which typically moves in step

with interest rate expectations for the Federal Reserve, rose

1.3 basis points to 3.792%, from 3.779% late on Tuesday.

Oil prices moved higher following reports of attacks on

container ships in the Strait of Hormuz.

U.S. crude rose 2.09% to $91.54 a barrel and Brent

rose to $100.58 per barrel, up 2.15% on the day.

Gold prices rose as geopolitical uncertainties eased,

reducing liquidation pressure on the metal.

Spot gold rose 0.45% to $4,732.98 an ounce. U.S. gold

futures rose 0.93% to $4,742.20 an ounce.