S&P 500 Moves Away from Lows, Market Weighs Middle East War Scenarios
Wall Street traders, still grappling with the various possible directions of war in the Middle East, pushed US stocks away from session lows, as hopes for talks to end the protracted conflict grew. Meanwhile, oil prices rebounded, indicating that the energy risk premium remains firmly entrenched.
The S&P 500 moved flat in trading on Tuesday (March 24) after a near 1% drop. An Iranian source told CNN that there had been "outreach" between Washington and Tehran, and that Iran was willing to listen to proposals deemed "sustainable." In the stock market, the energy sector strengthened as Brent held above $103 per barrel. Meanwhile, software stocks weakened after reports that Amazon Web Services (AWS) was developing new AI tools, which fueled concerns about weakening demand for legacy products.
In the precious metals market, gold fluctuated after recording nine consecutive days of declines. Treasury yields and the US dollar also edged higher, keeping pressure on non-yielding assets even though risk-off sentiment was not fully dominant.
Geopolitically, Israeli officials said their country would continue its attacks on Iran despite President Donald Trump's claims that talks were underway. Several sources said neighboring Arab states in the Gulf—Iran's main allies—were considering getting involved, especially if Tehran attacked their vital infrastructure.
Iran also began imposing transit fees on some commercial vessels passing through the Strait of Hormuz, asserting Tehran's control over the world's most important maritime energy route. This policy added uncertainty to shipping and reinforced the narrative that energy market stabilization was far from secure.
As of 12:06 p.m. New York time, the S&P 500 was down 0.2%, the Nasdaq 100 was down 0.5%, while the Dow Jones was relatively flat.
Newsmaker's takeaway: US stocks are beginning to pull back from their lows on a glimmer of hope for talks, but market direction remains fragile. As long as the conflict persists and Hormuz remains under pressure, oil is likely to remain strong and cross-asset volatility will remain high—the market will continue to swing from one headline to the next.
Source: Newsmaker.id
