On Tuesday, April 21, President Trump, in an interview with CNBC, stated that he expects the United States to reach a “great agreement” with Iran. Following this announcement, U.S. stock futures surged.
The President expressed his belief that the U.S. will ultimately reach a great agreement with Iran to end the weeks-long conflict. As a result of this news, U.S. stock index futures rose. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures gained 247 points, up 0.5%. S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq 100 futures also saw increases of 0.2% and 0.3% respectively.
During his interview with CNBC’s “Squawk Box” program on Tuesday, President Trump, when asked about his expectations for the second round of negotiations with Iran, replied, “I think they don’t have a choice.”
“We have destroyed their navy, taken out their air force, and we’ve also taken down their leadership,” Trump added.
“To be honest, we’ve taken down their leadership, which has made things somewhat complex, but those remaining leaders will be more rational,” the President said.
“This is regime change, whether you want to call it that or not, I didn’t say I was going to do it, but I indirectly did,” he said.
However, he also pointed out that if an agreement is not signed before the ceasefire deadline, the U.S. military is “prepared” to bomb Iran, and he does not want to extend the two-week ceasefire agreement.
Earlier on Tuesday, Trump posted on Truth Social stating, “Iran has violated the ceasefire agreement multiple times!”
While U.S. stock futures were rising, oil prices saw a decline. West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures dropped by 0.4% to over $89 per barrel. Brent crude oil futures fell by 0.3%, trading above $95 per barrel.
Due to escalating tensions over the weekend, major stock indices fell on Monday (20th), with the Nasdaq Composite Index ending its longest winning streak since 1992.
Nevertheless, investors remain optimistic about the overall outlook for the stock market. The President also expressed surprise on Tuesday at the resilience of the U.S. stock market during the conflict with Iran.
Strong earnings reports from some companies also influenced Tuesday’s stock market performance. UnitedHealth, a U.S. health insurance company, just released its first-quarter earnings for 2026, surpassing Wall Street expectations, leading to a more than 7% increase in its stock price. The company also raised its profit expectations, making it a standout performer in the stock market that day.