Trump's Mixed War Messages Leave Wall Street in Limbo

NEW YORK — Mixed signals from the Trump administration regarding the duration of the Iran conflict left New York markets closing mixed, while Energy Secretary Chris Wright's retracted claim about a successful oil tanker escort operation in the Strait of Hormuz sent crude prices on a wild ride.

On Friday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 34.29 points, or 0.07%, to close at 47,706.51. The S&P 500 declined 14.51 points, or 0.21%, to 6,781.48, while the Nasdaq Composite edged up 1.16 points, or 0.01%, to 22,697.10.

Among mega-cap tech stocks, Nvidia rose 1.16%, with Apple (0.37%), Amazon (0.39%), Alphabet (0.22%), Meta (1.03%), and Tesla (0.14%) also gaining. Microsoft fell 0.89% and Broadcom dropped 0.92%.

Markets remained volatile throughout the session as investors struggled to interpret President Donald Trump's repeated claims of an early end to the war without presenting a concrete exit strategy.

At a press conference at his Doral resort in Florida on Thursday, Trump declared, "We are winning decisively and are far ahead of schedule. The war will end soon." He warned that the U.S. "will not tolerate a terrorist regime holding the world hostage and attempting to cut off international oil supplies," adding that "Iran will face far more powerful strikes if it makes such attempts."

In a subsequent Q&A session, Trump reiterated that military operations against Iran would conclude "very soon."

However, the president has yet to outline specific plans for ending the conflict. In a CBS phone interview the previous day, Trump described the war as "very complete" while simultaneously stating he was "considering taking control of the Strait of Hormuz." In an ABC interview that same day, he said he "didn't know" how long the war would last but acknowledged that deploying special forces remained "on the table."

Speaking to Republican lawmakers before his press conference, Trump said, "We've won in many ways, but it's not enough," and ruled out the war ending "this week."

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced at a Pentagon briefing with Joint Chiefs Chairman Dan Caine that Friday "would be the most intense day of attacks against Iran" — signaling a bid for a quick victory through air power.

In the afternoon, Secretary Wright posted on X that the U.S. Navy had successfully escorted oil tankers through the Strait of Hormuz, only to delete the post minutes later. Reports then emerged that U.S. intelligence had detected Iranian movements to lay mines in the strait. Trump responded on Truth Social that while he had not received such reports, any mine-laying "for whatever reason" would be met with "unprecedented military action."

West Texas Intermediate crude for April delivery plunged $11.32, or 11.94%, to settle at $83.45 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange — the first decline in eight trading days since the U.S. airstrikes on Iran began on February 28. WTI fell as much as 18.95% intraday to $76.81 before recovering above $80 following Wright's retraction.

Airline stocks extended their losses amid the conflict and elevated oil prices. United Airlines fell 3.62% and Delta Air Lines dropped 2.16%.