The Dow surges more than 1,100 points

U.S. stocks surged to their best day since last spring as doubt swung back to hope on Wall Street about a possible end to the war with Iran.

The S&P 500 leaped 2.9% Tuesday for its largest gain since May. The Dow Jones Industrial Average soared 1,125 points, or 2.5%, and the Nasdaq composite rallied 3.8%.

US consumer confidence inches up despite prices

U.S. consumer confidence inched higher in March despite soaring energy prices brought on by the war in Iran.

The Conference Board said Tuesday that its consumer confidence index rose modestly to 91.8 in March from 91 in February.

Job openings slide to 6.9 million in February

U.S. job openings fell slightly last month to 6.9 million, another sign of sluggishness in the American labor market.

The Labor Department reported Tuesday that job vacancies fell from 7.2 million in January. The Job Openings and Labor Turnover Summary (JOLTS), showed that layoffs rose and the number of people quitting their jobs — a sign of confidence in their prospects for finding better pay or working conditions elsewhere — slipped.

US appeals court won’t reopen plane crash case

A federal appeals court in the United States has denied a request to reopen a criminal case against Boeing tied to two fatal crashes of 737 Max jets.

Dozens of families of the 346 people killed in the crashes argued the Justice Department failed to meaningfully consult them before reaching a deal last year with Boeing that dismissed a criminal conspiracy charge linked to a faulty flight-control system on the 737 Max.

San Francisco airport arrivals cut by FAA

Travelers can expect roughly one quarter of the flights to be delayed by at least half an hour at San Francisco International Airport over the next six months.

This was after the Federal Aviation Administration this week cut a third of its arrivals because of safety concerns and runway construction.

Trump officials exempt oil, gas drilling in Gulf

Trump administration officials are exempting oil and gas drilling in the Gulf of Mexico from the Endangered Species Act. The exemption was requested by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, who cited lawsuits from environmental groups as a threat to the nation’s energy production.

Critics say Tuesday’s move could doom Gulf populations of endangered Rice’s whales. The exemptions would speed the extinction of the rare Rice’s whale, which is found exclusively in the Gulf of Mexico. Government biologists say only about 50 of the animals remain.

Jury can’t reach verdict in FirstEnergy bribe trial

A jury has deadlocked in the trial of two fired FirstEnergy Corp. executives charged for their roles in Ohio’s $60 million bribery scandal.

Jurors in Akron declared an impasse Tuesday in the case of ex-CEO Chuck Jones and former senior vice president Michael Dowling. The two were charged with felony corruption, bribery, conspiracy and aggravated theft for paying $4.3 million to the state’s future top utility regulator.

Nevada lithium mine clears major hurdle

A federal judge ruled against conservation groups in their efforts to block a proposed lithium-boron mining project in Nevada.

Conservationists argue the project would harm an endangered wildflower called Tiehm’s buckwheat, a perennial plant that grows in just 10 acres of Esmeralda County.