The main US stock market indices split at open on Tuesday after Trump administration made mixed remarks regarding the Middle East war.
The S&P 500 opened at 6,795.45, Dow Jones Industrial Average opened 0.06% lower at 47,710.76, whereas the tech heavy nasdaq index gained 0.18% or over 40 points at open.
As of 10:23 a.m. (EST), S&P 500 traded 0.18% lower at 6,784.6, Dow Jones traded 0.15% lower at 47, and Nasdaq traded flat at 22,697.12.
US President Donald Trump said on Monday night (EST) said that the war against Iran may be short-lived despite the country's selection of a new hard-line supreme leader to oversee the fight for the Islamic theocracy's survival.
ALSO READ: Trump Says Iran War Could Be Over Soon, Multiple Strikes Shake Tehran
But moments later, Trump hinted during a news conference that the worst fighting could still be ahead as he threatened intensified action if Iran made any "attempt to stop the globe's oil supply". The back-and-forth sent oil prices and stock markets seesawing.
US Secretary of Defense Peter Hegseth fuelled escalation conjectures by stating that the US will launch the most "intense strike" on Iran on Tuesday.
He added that America will not end Iran war until "the enemy is defeated."
Shares of defense-linked chipmaker Palantir Technologies Inc. plunged over 3% to trade at $151.64. Other defense majors like Lockheed Martin Corp., Northrop Grumman Corp., and General Dynamics Corp. fell nearly 2%.
Lockheed Martin traded 1.4% lower at $654.82, Northrop Grumman traded 1.65% lower at $735.04, and General Dynamics slumped 1.75% to $355.40. Stocks of Boeing Co., and RTX Corp. were also trading lower.
The magnifcent seven stocks traded mix, with over 1% gains in Tesla Inc. and over 1% losses in Microsoft Corp.
Volatility for oil prices remained elevated, with the West Texas Intermediate trading 7.63% lower at $87.54 a barrel and global benchmark brent crude trading 8% lower at $91.03 a barrel.
The US Dollar Spot Index fell 0.2%, while most global currencies remained little changed. The euro was little changed at $1.1630, British pound was little changed at $1.3448, Japanese yen fell 0.1% to 157.83 per dollar.
Bitcoin, the largest traded cryptocurrency, rose 1.7% to $70,133.77
ALSO READ: India Snaps Up 30 Million Barrels Of Russian Oil After US Waiver
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