The three major New York stock indexes fell for a third straight day on the 9th (Eastern time) under the impact of a surge in international oil prices and U.S. Government Bonds yields.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished at 52,380.66, down 405.41 points, or 0.77%, from the previous day. The Standard & Poor's (S&P) 500 fell 37.16 points, or 0.48%, to 7,636.36, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite closed at 26,253.34, down 168.07 points, or 0.64%.
As tensions rose between the United States and Iran, Brent crude topping $100 a barrel weighed on investor sentiment.
The U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said the day before that it destroyed five Iranian oil tankers in response to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) attacking a U.S. Navy vessel. Iran claimed it retaliated by striking a U.S. military base in Jordan with ballistic missiles.
As a result, on the day at the ICE Futures exchange in London, November delivery Brent crude settled at $101.21 a barrel, up $3.29, or 3.36%, from the previous session. This is the highest closing level since May 22. It was the first time since July 23 that Brent crude closed above $100 a barrel.
U.S. President Donald Trump suggested that a war with Iran could continue through the U.S. midterm elections in November, heightening concerns that high oil prices could persist for the time being. Trump said, "As soon as the midterm elections are over, oil prices will plunge. We will make it so, and I think gasoline prices will fall below $2 per gallon."
Rising U.S. Government Bonds yields also weighed on stocks. The U.S. Treasury said it would conduct an early buyback of long-dated Government Bonds on the 10th, up to $6 billion.
However, as the buyback size fell short of some market expectations of $8 billion to $10 billion, Government Bonds yields rose instead. The 10-year U.S. Government Bonds yield topped 4.85% intraday, the highest since Nov. 2023.