Oil Prices Surge Amid US-Iran Tensions, Weighing on Stocks
US stocks edged lower in afternoon trading on Wall Street Thursday as oil prices rose and corporate earnings reports rolled in. The S&P 500 fell 0.1%, hovering just below its record set Tuesday, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 404 points, or 0.7%, after rising earlier this week. The Nasdaq composite was mostly unchanged.
The surge in oil prices added to market volatility, with Brent crude rising 3.9% to $82.55 per barrel amid ongoing uncertainty over the US-Iran conflict affecting global oil flows. Companies from various sectors reported earnings results, with Warner Bros. Discovery and Molson Coors beating expectations but Honeywell Aerospace and AppLovin falling short.
The strong overall profits in the S&P 500 have helped alleviate concerns about market overvaluation, with roughly 85% of companies reporting their quarterly results showing the strongest earnings growth since 2021. The jobs market remains resilient, but employment growth has been easing, with employers adding only 57,000 jobs in June and a rise in unemployment claims last week.
The Federal Reserve's decision to hold benchmark interest rates steady is expected to influence investors' sentiment, given the stubborn inflation rate above 3% and growing concerns about its impact on economic growth. The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 4.67%, while European markets were mostly higher and Asian markets closed lower overnight.