Stocks recover losses, and oil prices ease as calm returns to financial
markets worldwide
[July 10, 2026] By
STAN CHOE
NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks rose, and oil prices eased Thursday as financial
markets calmed in the wait to see what will come next after President
Donald Trump raised doubts about the temporary truce in the war with
Iran.
The S&P 500 climbed 0.8% and more than recovered its loss from the day
before, even though the United States launched new airstrikes against
Iran, which responded by targeting U.S. allies in the Middle East. The
Dow Jones Industrial Average added 139 points, or 0.3%, and the Nasdaq
composite rallied 1.3%.
In the oil market, prices gave back much of their jumps from the day
before. The price for a barrel of Brent crude, the international
standard, fell 2.2% to $76.30. That’s down from $78.02 the day before
though still above its $71.80 price from the end of last week.
The worry is that a return to full-blown war will block oil tankers from
the Strait of Hormuz and prevent the delivery of crude from the Persian
Gulf to customers worldwide. That could worsen inflation, which
economists expected would ease with oil prices, and in turn force the
Federal Reserve and other central banks to raise interest rates.
Higher rates can keep a lid on inflation, but they also slow the economy
and hurt prices for all kinds of investments.
But Trump also said Wednesday that the latest back-and-forth fighting
would not result in “long-term” military action, raising uncertainty
about just what will happen.
The swings for oil prices halted what had been a steady decline in
gasoline prices, and the cost for a gallon climbed a nickel overnight,
according to motor club AAA. The average price for a gallon of regular
gasoline was $3.85 Thursday, up 68 cents from a year earlier.
In the meantime, renewed strength for makers of computer chips and other
winners of the boom around artificial-intelligence technology helped to
support stock markets worldwide.
In South Korea, whose stock market is dominated by two companies that
make semiconductors, the Kospi index rose 0.6% after tumbling 5.3% the
day before. SK Hynix, which is preparing to sell shares of its stock
that will trade in the United States, jumped 5.3% in Seoul.
On Wall Street, Micron Technology’s climb of 4.5% was one of the
strongest forces lifting the S&P 500. Micron cited “surging demand for
memory in the AI era” as it gave a progress update on construction in
central New York of what it says is the largest semiconductor
manufacturing site in U.S. history.
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Traders work on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange in New
York, Monday, July 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
 Such stocks have become some of Wall
Street’s most influential after growing so big in the euphoria
around AI. But AI stocks have also come under pressure recently
because of worries their prices shot too high and that AI may not
create enough productivity and profits to make all the investments
in chips and data centers worth it.
All told, the S&P 500 rose 60.93 points to
7,543.64. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 139.02 to
52,487.41, and the Nasdaq composite rose 336.24 to 26,206.89.
Stocks broadly got some help from falling yields in the bond market.
The yield on the 10-year Treasury fell to 4.54% from 4.56% late
Wednesday.
It had been climbing on worries about high oil prices and the
potential for higher interest rates, which cranked up the pressure
on stocks and prices for other investments.
Besides the war with Iran, another big event for Wall Street is the
upcoming start of earnings reporting season for companies. Next
week, the biggest banks are set to unveil how much profit they made
from April through June. Companies across industries will need to
report strong growth to justify the big moves their stock prices
have made.
PepsiCo fell 3.3% even though it reported slightly better revenue
for the latest quarter than analysts expected. Numbers released by
the company behind Gatorade and Doritos showed weakening trends in
its North American food and drinks businesses.
In stock markets abroad, indexes rose across much of Europe and
Asia.
Besides Seoul’s climb, stock indexes rose 1.7% in Shanghai and 0.9%
in Paris.
On the losing end was Hong Kong’s Hang Seng, which slipped 0.7% as
shares of Apple supplier Luxshare fell 1.5% in its trading debut.
___
AP Business Writers Chan Ho-him and Matt Ott contributed to this
report.
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