Dow falls more than 200 points as oil surges amid rising Middle East tensions: Live Update

Stocks slipped on Tuesday as a worsening situation in the Middle East appeared to dampen investor enthusiasm coming off a strong quarter.

D Dow Jones Industrial Average down 290 points or 0.7%. D S&P 500 1% withdrawn and Nasdaq Composite 1.4% lost.

West Texas Intermediate Crude Oil A senior White House official told NBC News that there are “indications” that Iran is preparing to launch ballistic missiles directly at Israel. a jump CBOE Volatility Index (VIX)Also known as Wall Street's fear gauge, above 20 indicates growing anxiety among traders

“Fear of contagion is always destabilizing,” said Keith Buchanan, senior portfolio manager at Global Investments. “Of course, in addition to the overall impact on life, markets take a direct hit when there are forces that almost promise some level of instability.”

Nearly four out of every five S&P 500 stocks traded lower in the session, highlighting broader market problems. But energy names diverged significantly after the Middle East report, with the S&P 500 sector rising more than 1%.

Technology names felt the brunt of Tuesday's decline, explaining losses outside the Nasdaq. apple And Tesla Slide more than 2%, while Nvidia Decreased by more than 1%. But Facebook is the parent meta This trend bucked, rising near all-time highs.

Small-cap stocks also took a hit, too Russell 2000 Sliding more than 1%.

Stocks come off month and quarter winners

Tuesday's pullback in the S&P 500 and Dow came after record closings in the previous session, which marked the end of the trading month and quarter. September is usually the worst month of the year for stocks, but this time it broke with past trends.

All three major averages posted monthly gains and it was the first positive September for the S&P 500 since 2019.

Stocks advanced on Monday even after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said the central bank is “on no preset course” when it comes to the next move on rate policy. He said he expects two more cuts this year — that is, a quarter of a percentage point each — if the economy performs as expected.

Investors will now look to Friday's September nonfarm payrolls report, which could act as a catalyst for major averages.

Traders were also monitoring strikes by members of the International Longshoremen's Association on the East and Gulf coasts. Although consumers may not feel the pinch immediately, the shutdown could cost the U.S. economy tens of millions of dollars.