Key Points
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AMD stock jumped nearly 18% after the chipmaker reported blowout Q1 results driven by AI accelerator demand.
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Oil prices dropped more than 6% on reports that the U.S. and Iran are nearing a deal to end the conflict.
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President Trump tempered expectations on the Iran deal, and the administration paused its Strait of Hormuz escort plan.
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If you checked your portfolio at breakfast and then again at lunch, congratulations; you probably like what you see. Stocks are rallying hard on Wednesday, May 6, 2026, and the mood on Wall Street has shifted from “cautiously nervous” to “genuinely optimistic” in just a few hours.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJINDICES: ^DJI) is up a healthy 1.3%, with the usual heavy hitters doing the lifting. Thanks to their roughly $900 share prices, Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) and Caterpillar (NYSE: CAT) only needed approximately 2% gains to lead the level-boosting way.
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It was a different story on the Nasdaq-100 and S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC). In these cap-weighted indexes, Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA) took the lead. The S&P 500 matched the Dow’s 1.3% gains, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq-100 posted a 1.7% jump. It’s a great day for the leading stock market indexes.
The stories driving today’s gains
Nvidia rode another company’s coattails today. Longtime rival Advanced Micro Devices (NASDAQ: AMD) published Q1 2026 results last night, crushing Wall Street’s estimates across the board. As expected, AMD credited its tremendous growth to the massive demand for AI accelerators. In other words, the AI boom is not slowing down, but adding new names to the list of preferred hardware suppliers.
That could have been bad news for Nvidia, whose chips have been the clear leader in the first three years of the generative AI frenzy. However, investors see AMD selling AI accelerators as fast as it can make them. If the runner-up is building a backlog of unfilled AI chip orders, the established leader must be in good shape, too. AMD’s stock is up by 17.5% as of this writing, followed by a 5.3% jump for Nvidia shares.
Apart from the bustling earnings season, investors are embracing some geopolitical news today.
Reports emerged that the U.S. and Iran are getting close to a deal that could end the conflict, including a moratorium on nuclear enrichment. That nuclear component has been a deal breaker for U.S. negotiators in earlier rounds. As a result, investors expect the Strait of Hormuz to loosen up someday soon, and West Texas Intermediate oil prices fell more than 6%.
That hasn’t translated into lower prices at the gas pump yet, though. In fact, the gas bill is still increasing. According to the AAA, the average price for a gallon of regular gas rose by another 1% today.
Before you get too excited, President Trump pumped the brakes a bit, saying a deal isn’t certain. The administration also hit pause on “Project Freedom,” its plan to escort ships through the Strait of Hormuz, where about 1,600 vessels remain stuck in maritime limbo. So the Iran conflict is far from resolved, even if the stock market breathed a huge sigh of relief.
Image source: Getty Images.
The bigger picture
For everyday investors, the takeaway is straightforward. Days like today feel great, but they shouldn’t change your long-term strategy. The companies benefiting most right now, especially in AI and semiconductors, are the ones with real earnings growth behind them.
That’s not luck; that’s fundamentals. Stay diversified, stay patient, and try not to refresh your brokerage app every five minutes. Your future self will thank you.
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Anders Bylund has positions in Nvidia. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Advanced Micro Devices, Caterpillar, Goldman Sachs Group, and Nvidia. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
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