Wednesday, April 1, 2026…4:10 PM ET
[4:00 PM ET closing prices for stocks; 3:50ish for commodities and bonds.]
Big night coming up…the launch of Artemis II, slated for 6:24 PM ET, if the weather cooperates…and then President Trump is updating the nation at 9:00 PM ET on the status of the Iran war.
Tale of the Tape at the gas pump, nationwide averages, courtesy of AAA.
Fri., Feb. 27…regular gas $2.98…diesel $3.75
Wed. Apr. 1…reg. $4.06…diesel $5.49
Late Tuesday afternoon, after I posted my Market Update, President Trump told reporters in the White House that he foresaw ending the war within two to three weeks, suggesting the U.S. had largely accomplished its military goals.
Trump indicated that it was possible that Iran could still reach a deal with the U.S. during that timeframe but said an agreement with Tehran was not necessary for the war to end. Trump suggested he could leave it to other nations to resolve issues with the Strait.
“I would say that within two weeks, maybe two weeks, maybe three,” Trump said. “We’ll leave because there’s no reason for us to do this.”
“That’s not for us. That’ll be for France. That’ll be for whoever’s using the strait,” Trump said.
Trump said the U.S. would leave when Iran was not able to obtain nuclear weapons and claimed the regime now in power was better than the leadership before the war.
“We have had regime change now. Regime change was not one of the things I had as a goal. I had one goal. They will have no nuclear weapons, and that goal has been attained. They will not have nuclear weapons,” the president said.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio, appearing Tuesday night on Sean Hannity’s Fox News show, said Washington could see the “finish line,” and the U.S. will have to re-examine ties with NATO after the conflict.
“We can see the finish line. It’s not today, it’s not tomorrow, but it is coming,” Rubio said.
“There are messages being exchanged, there are talks going on. There is the potential for a direct meeting at some point,” Rubio added.
The secretary then said “that there’s nothing any government is doing, or any country in the world is doing now to help Iran that is in any way impeding our mission.”
Rubio added Washington will have to re-examine its relations with NATO after the Iran war.
“Ultimately, that’s a decision for the president to make, and he’ll have to make it,” Rubio said.
“But I do think, unfortunately, we are going to have to re-examine whether or not this alliance that has served this country well for a while is still serving that purpose, or has it now become a one-way street where America is simply in a position to defend Europe, but when we need the help of our allies, they’re going to deny us basing rights, and they’re going to deny us overflight,” he added in reference to use of military bases.
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi acknowledged receiving direct messages from U.S. Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff.
In an interview with Al Jazeera aired late on Tuesday, he said: “I receive messages from Witkoff directly, as before, and this does not mean that we are in negotiations.
“We do not have any faith that negotiations with the U.S. will yield any results. The trust level is at zero.”
Asked about a possible ground offensive by the U.S., Araghchi said “we are waiting for them.”
Wednesday morning, President Trump posted on Truth Social:
“Iran’s New Regime President, much less Radicalized and far more intelligent than his predecessors, has just asked the United States of America for a CEASEFIRE! We will consider when Hormuz Strait is open, free, and clear. Until then, we are blasting Iran into oblivion or, as they say, back to the Stone Ages!!! President DJT”
But top Iranian officials denied Trump’s claim that the regime begged for a cease-fire deal, insisting that Tehran is committed to winning the war.
A spokesperson for the office of President Pezeshkian rejected Trump’s post claiming that Tehran had reached out to Washington for a peace deal.
“The stance of the Islamic Republic of Iran regarding the defense of the homeland against the onslaught of the forces of evil and the conditions for ending the imposed war has undergone no change, and there is no regard whatsoever for the delusions and lies of the criminal aggressors,” Seyyed Mehdi Tabatabaei wrote on X.
“The Iranian nation, resolute, steadfast, and united, defends the essence of its homeland. #unity is the key to our victory,” he added.
Meanwhile, Qatar said it was targeted by three Iranian cruise missiles on Wednesday, two of them intercepted, while the third struck an oil tanker in northern waters.
The crew of 21 suffered no injuries.
Israel carried out a “wide-scale wave of strikes” on Tehran, the IDF said.
Wall Street’s rally continued today, and oil fell a bit on optimism the war is winding down to a favorable outcome. We’ll see what the president says tonight, with Iran sending a letter in the past hour claiming the country harbors no enmity to ordinary U.S. citizens, and calling on the U.S. to end the war, warning that the Islamic Republic would outlast any form of American aggression.
Frankly, the only thing I care about in the very short term is the successful launch of Artemis II. We need some good news.
Dow Jones +224…+0.5% [46565]
S&P 500 +46…+0.7% [6]
Nasdaq +250…+1.2% [21840]
Happy 50th Birthday, Apple!
Oil (WTI) $99.40.…Brent $100.80
Gold $4775
Silver $75.25
Bitcoin $68,135 [4:00 PM ET]
U.S. 2-yr. 3.81%
U.S. 10-yr. 4.33%
Japanese 10-yr. 2.29%
Back Thurs.
Brian Trumbore
