Stock Market News for Mar 24, 2026

U.S. stocks closed higher on Monday as investor sentiment was lifted by hopes of easing Middle East tensions. The Nasdaq Composite, the S&P 500 and the Dow all ended in positive territory.

How Did the Benchmarks Perform?

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) rose 1.4%, or 631.00 points, to close at 46,208.47.Twenty-four components of the 30-stock index ended in positive territory, while six ended in negative territory.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite advanced 1.4%, to close at 21,946.76. The major gainer of the Nasdaq Composite was Albemarle Corporation ALB after jumping 3.5%. Albemarle currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

The S&P 500 gained 1.2% or 74.52 points, to end at 6,581.00. All 11 broad sectors of the broad-market index ended in positive territory. The Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR (XLY), the MaterialsSelect Sector SPDR (XLB) and the Information Technology Select Sector SPDR (XLK) rose 2.5%, 1.5% and 1.5%, respectively.

The fear gauge, the CBOE Volatility Index (VIX), decreased by 2.4% to 26.15. A total of 27.94 billion shares were traded on Monday, higher than the last 20-session average of 20.68 billion. The S&P 500 posted seven new 52-week highs and eight new lows, and the Nasdaq Composite recorded 34 new highs and 154 new lows.

U.S.-Iran Talks Raise Market Optimism

Investor sentiment improved in late trading after President Donald Trump’s post on Truth Social Platform— “I am pleased to report that the United States of America, and the country of Iran, have had, over the last two days, very good and productive conversations regarding a complete and total resolution of our hostilities in the Middle East.” While this raised hopes of easing Middle East tensions, the remark was contradicted by Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, who said there were no talks.

Economic Data

The U.S. Census Bureau reported that construction spending had decreased 0.3% in January. The number for December was revised up to an increase of 0.8% from the previously reported 0.3%.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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