New York stocks ended lower as concerns grew that U.S. and Israeli airstrikes on Iran could spread across the Middle East.
On the 3rd (local time) in New York, the Dow Jones Industrial Average finished at 48,501.27, down 403.51 points, or 0.83%, from the prior transaction. The Standard & Poor's (S&P) 500 fell 64.99 points, or 0.94%, to 6,816.63, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite closed at 22,516.691, down 232.17 points, or 1.02%.
Concerns mounted that the U.S. and Israeli airstrikes that began on the 28th and Iran's counterattack could turn into a protracted war, and the risk that Iran's military could close the Strait of Hormuz, disrupting global crude shipments, also increased, sending the S&P and Nasdaq down as much as 2.5% and 2.7% intraday.
However, losses gradually narrowed in the afternoon after President Trump said on his social media (SNS) Truth Social that "the U.S. Navy will directly protect energy shipping lanes if necessary."
By sector, all groups fell, with materials logging the biggest drop at 2.69%. Technology, industrials and health care also declined more than 1%.
All 30 constituents of the Philly index fell, with Micron Technology plunging 8%. Intel (-5.27%), KLA (-6.10%), Applied Materials (-5.60%) and Lam Research (-5.94%) also dropped around 6%.
Among mega-cap tech companies with market capitalizations above $1 trillion, Microsoft (5.38%) showed strength. Meta (0.23%) and Amazon (0.16%) also extended gains. Nvidia (-2.43%) and Broadcom (-1.56%) fell around 2%.