Stocks fell Tuesday as growing tensions in the Middle East poured water on investor enthusiasm coming off a strong quarter.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average weakened 173.18 points Tuesday to 42,156.97.
The S&P 500 index sank 53.73 points to 5,708.75
The NASDAQ Composite swooned 278.81 points, or 1.5%, to 17,910.36.
West Texas Intermediate crude oil spiked after the Israel Defense Forces said Iran was firing missiles at the country.that there are “indications” that Iran is preparing to launch a ballistic missile directly at Israel.
But oil traded off its high of the session and stocks moved off their lows after the Iran attack as traders hoped damage and subsequent Israel retaliation would be minimal.
Tech names felt the brunt of Tuesday’s declines, explaining the NASDAQ’s outsized losses. Tesla, Nvidia and Apple all dropped more than 3%. But Facebook parent Meta bucked this trend, rising near all-time highs.
Traders were also monitoring a strike by members of the International Longshoremen’s Association on the East and Gulf coasts. While consumers may not feel the pinch immediately, the stoppage could cost the U.S. economy hundreds of millions of dollars.
Prices for the 10-year Treasury hiked, lowering yields to 3.74% from Monday’s 3.79%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices gained $2.22 at $70.39 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices soared $22.30 to $2,681.70 U.S. an ounce
