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| Stocks Fall as U.S.-Iran Tensions Mount | |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| The aftershock of the American killing of a powerful Iranian general rippled through financial markets on Monday, as oil prices surged and investors turned to safe havens like gold and Treasury bonds in the face of rising tensions in the Middle East. | |
| The S&P 500 dropped 0.6 percent in early trading, a second day of declines since the killing of Maj. Gen. Qassim Suleimani. Iran pledged to retaliate for the killing while President Trump raised the specter of additional strikes on Iranian cultural sites if it did so. | |
| The State Department warned of a “heightened risk” of a missile attack near American military bases. Iran later said it would abandon a nuclear agreement and Iraq vowed to expel American troops from the country. | The State Department warned of a “heightened risk” of a missile attack near American military bases. Iran later said it would abandon a nuclear agreement and Iraq vowed to expel American troops from the country. |
| The sudden escalation in tensions in a region that supplies much of the world’s petroleum has roiled oil markets. | |
| The price of Brent oil, the international benchmark, jumped above $70 in futures trading before falling back slightly. The price is about 5 percent higher than before the killing last week. | |
| West Texas Intermediate, the American oil benchmark, rose 1.6 percent to $64.04 a barrel in futures trading. | |
| Analysts at Capital Economics have warned that the price of oil could spike to $150 a barrel if the bellicose rhetoric between the two countries turned into action. | Analysts at Capital Economics have warned that the price of oil could spike to $150 a barrel if the bellicose rhetoric between the two countries turned into action. |
| “The price of oil would soar in the event of full-blown military conflict in the Middle East,” said Alexander Kozul-Wright, a commodities economist at Capital Economics. | “The price of oil would soar in the event of full-blown military conflict in the Middle East,” said Alexander Kozul-Wright, a commodities economist at Capital Economics. |
| “However,” he added, “this rally would probably be short-lived as supply networks would adjust and demand would slump in the wake of higher prices.” | “However,” he added, “this rally would probably be short-lived as supply networks would adjust and demand would slump in the wake of higher prices.” |
| The price of gold, considered a safe haven investment, reached its highest level since April 2013. The spot price of bullion hit $1,588.13 an ounce, up more than 2 percent, in early trading before coming down slightly. | The price of gold, considered a safe haven investment, reached its highest level since April 2013. The spot price of bullion hit $1,588.13 an ounce, up more than 2 percent, in early trading before coming down slightly. |
| Stocks also fell in financial capitals across Asia and Europe. In Tokyo, shares fell by 2 percent, while major stock markets in Hong Kong, Taipei and Seoul inched down about 1 percent or more. | |
| Markets in Frankfurt, London, Paris and Amsterdam were all down about 1 percent. |