US stocks close narrowly mixed, trading volatile after air strikes on Iran
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Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange at the opening bell on March 2, 2026, in New York City.
PHOTO: AFP
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US stocks finished steady on March 2, clawing back early losses during a volatile session after US and Israeli air strikes on Iran roiled global markets.
Investors bought the dip with some enthusiasm and a strong bid emerged for AI-focused shares.
Gains in energy, tech and defense stocks offset losses in other sectors. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.15 per cent to 48,904.78 points, while the S&P 500 gained 0.04 per cent to 6,881.60 points and the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.36 per cent, to 22,748.86 points.
Investor confidence in US markets, and optimism about productivity gains tied to artificial intelligence, offset worries about surging oil prices and geopolitical turmoil, said Mr Alex Morris, CEO of F/m Investments.
“The overall action in the Middle East does not have a tremendous impact on the average American stock the way we measure,” said Mr Morris, noting the US market’s heavy concentration in technology.
“I just don’t think the average market participant is that moved by the conflict until the price of oil gets to US$100 a barrel, which would be an emotional trigger.”
Coordinated US and Israeli strikes on Iran over the weekend
Bargain hunting emerged among US investors after the early selloff, showing an expectation that the disruptions from the conflict will be limited.
“Market participants think this is all just temporary and that the problems in the oil patch will disappear,” said Mr Bill Smead, founder and chairman of Smead Capital Management. The clash initially boosted defense shares and energy prices and pressured travel and interest-sensitive sectors. Later, investors ran to tech and weighed how long the Middle East conflict could run and what the conflict means for inflation and Federal Reserve policy.
Mr Smead said investors were reverting to familiar, high-performing stocks like Nvidia, the Magnificent Seven technology stocks and defence sectors.
“When people get scared, they go back to what is comfortable,” he said.
Nvidia gained 3 per cent and Microsoft climbed 1.5 per cent, recovering from sharp declines in February. The gains helped the S&P 500 and Nasdaq cut losses after both briefly hit two-week lows earlier in the session.
In Europe and Asia, stock markets sank under the weight of surging oil prices and war-driven uncertainty.
The French and German stock markets fell more than 1 per cent. Japan’s Nikkei 225 slid 1.73 per cent, having plunged as much as 2 per cent at the open. Energy companies, whose profits rise alongside oil prices, outperformed, while travel and airline stocks sank due to flight cancelations, higher jet-fuel costs and widespread Middle East airspace closures.
Delta and United Airlines fell more than 2 per cent each, while crude-price-sensitive cruise stocks such as Carnival lost 7.6 per cent and Norwegian Cruise fell over 10 per cent. Several oil and gas facilities in the Middle East stopped production. US crude prices settled up 6 per cent at US$71.23 (S$90) a barrel after being up twice as much during the session. Brent settled at US$77.74 per barrel, up 6.68 per cent.
Defence stocks also got a boost, with the main US defence equity benchmark, the Dow Jones US Defense Index, trading up. President Donald Trump also told CNN the “big wave” is yet to come lobbying US allies to persuade a swift end to the war
AES Corp fell 17.8 per cent after a consortium led by BlackRock-owned Global Infrastructure Partners and private equity firm EQT AB agreed to acquire the utilities company for US$33.4 billion at a discount to its last close. REUTERS
