The shock of U.S. and Israeli airstrikes on Iran is battering the stock market on the 9th local time. The three major New York stock indexes opened lower across the board. Crude oil topped $100, denting investor sentiment.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average is down 1.69% at 46,698.65. The Nasdaq is trading 1.14% lower at 22,133.2. The Standard & Poor's (S&P) 500 is down 1.37% at 6,647.37.
As the all-out war between the United States and Iran enters its 10th day, oil prices spiked intraday to $119.48. With fuel costs rising on higher oil, Delta Air Lines shares are down more than 5%. Newmont, the world's No. 1 gold miner, also fell more than 4%. As investors flock to the dollar, precious metals, considered safe assets, are also weakening.
The telehealth platform Hims & Hers surged more than 38%. That is because it became known that Novo Nordisk, which developed the obesity drug Wegovy, filed and then withdrew a lawsuit against Hims & Hers for patent infringement. Hims & Hers agreed to sell Novo Nordisk's medicines through its platform.
European stocks are also falling across the board. The Euro Stoxx 50 is down 1.76% at 5,619.43. Britain's FTSE 100 and France's CAC 40 fell 1.37% and 2.18%, respectively. Germany's DAX dropped 1.87% from the previous session. Meanwhile, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for April delivery is up 14.32% from the previous session at $103.92 per barrel.
With Mojtaba Khamenei, the second son, elected as successor to Ayatollah Sayyid Ali Khamenei in Iran, concerns are rising among investors about a protracted war. Mojtaba is classified as a hard-liner toward the United States.