US markets see-saw as investors keep close eye on Iran war | Stock markets
U.S. stocks swung Monday as investors tried to keep up with the news on the first day of trading since the U.S. and Israeli attacks on Iran began.
After falling more than 1% overall, major indexes recouped most of their losses, even after global markets saw larger declines earlier in the day. As of Monday’s close, the Dow was down 0.15%, while the S&P 500 was up 0.04%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq rose 0.36% for the day.
Trading focused on technology stocks, notably Nvidia and Palantir, while a slowdown was seen in travel stocks, notably United, Delta and American airlines.
Earlier in the day, global markets saw larger declines, with London’s FTSE 100 stock index down 1.2% and Germany’s DAX down 2.4% at the close.
Investors around the world are paying close attention to the possibility of higher gas prices after Iranian retaliation against US airstrikes. Gas prices have jumped nearly 50% in some European and Asian markets since Saturday.
Over the weekend, Iranian drone strikes crippled QatarEnergy, the state-owned gas company that is one of the world’s largest producers of liquefied natural gas (LNG). Tehran has also attacked oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz, a key passage for tankers heading to Europe and Asia.
On Monday, benchmark gas prices in Europe and Asia were up 40% at close.
The price of Brent crude, the global benchmark for oil prices, was up 6.9% at the close. In the United States, crude oil futures closed at around $72 a barrel – the highest since last summer, although still well below the peak of $120 a barrel seen after Russia’s first invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
The Iranian conflict has added even more uncertainty to the US economy, which is still reeling from the impact of Donald Trump’s tariffs on prices. Mortgage rates rose on Monday after falling below 6% for the first time since 2022, climbing back to 6.12% as 10-year U.S. Treasuries jumped 4%.
The U.S. attack on Iran comes as Americans begin to lash out at Trump over inflation after his election campaign promised to stem the rising cost of living. Trump said Monday the war is expected to last four to five weeks but could “last much longer than that,” an uncertainty that could spill over into consumer prices if the attacks drag on.
JP Morgan chief Jamie Dimon told CNBC on Monday that he was not worried about the conflict’s impacts on U.S. inflation.
“The economy doesn’t often get driven by something like this unless it’s prolonged,” Dimon said. “If this does not continue, it will not be a major inflationary shock.”
