Stocks fell on Wednesday as oil prices and Treasury yields moved higher amid worries the U.S.-Iran conflict could keep lifting inflation.
The Dow Jones Industrials were clobbered 619.36 points, or 1.2%, to 50,688.43.
The S&P 500 subtracted 55.43 points to 7,554.35.
The NASDAQ slipped 239.93 points to 26,853.98.
Declines in artificial intelligence-related stocks also weighed on the broader market. Nvidia lost more than 3%, while Dell Technologies shed around 3%, and Oracle declined more than 5%. Microsoft also moved lower by 3%.
Shares of U.S. private equity firms were a sore spot of the day, falling after Swiss-based private equity firm Partners Group announced it was capping investor withdrawals from one of its funds. KKR dropped 5%, while Blackstone declined 3%.
Late Tuesday, the Kuwait army said in a social media post that air defense systems were “intercepting hostile targets.”
U.S. Central Command later said that American forces defeated Iranian ballistic missiles and drones, and they also carried out “self-defense strikes” on Qeshm Island “in response to attempted attacks by Iran across the Middle East.”
President Donald Trump also said Iran agreed to not having nuclear weapons, but added “they can change their mind.”
Prices for the 10-year Treasury gained, lowering yields to 4.49% from Tuesday’s 4.50%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices strengthened $2.31 to $96.07 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices plummeted $46.10 to $4,473.800 U.S. an ounce.
