Wall Street Mixed as Oil Prices Jump After US-Iran Exchange of Strikes

Oil prices surged and Wall Street opened to mixed results Monday as the United States carried out several waves of airstrikes on Iran following an Iranian attack on a container ship in the Strait of Hormuz over the weekend, reigniting fears over global energy supply disruptions and renewed inflationary pressure.

Oil Climbs, Energy Stocks Gain

Brent crude, the international benchmark, jumped as much as nearly 5% in early Monday trading before pulling back. By midday in Europe, Brent was up 3.4%, adding $2.58 to $77.72 per barrel. US benchmark crude added 3.5%, or $2.48, to $72.92. Both benchmarks had recently slipped back to roughly their prewar levels after the two sides reached an interim agreement and ships resumed moving through the strait — gains that are now threatened.

Energy producers benefited from the spike in crude prices. ExxonMobil, ConocoPhillips, and Chevron each gained approximately 1% before the opening bell.

Chip Stocks Drag Futures Lower

Technology and semiconductor shares moved in the opposite direction. SanDisk, Western Digital, and Micron each fell close to 5% in premarket trading, dragging broader index futures lower. Futures for the S&P 500 fell 0.3%, Dow Jones futures were unchanged, and Nasdaq futures tumbled 0.8%.

The chip sector’s decline added to recent volatility driven by concerns that AI spending may not deliver the productivity and profit gains investors have anticipated, compounded now by the geopolitical uncertainty of renewed US-Iran hostilities.

Banks, Inflation, and Fed in Focus

This week’s earnings calendar will test market sentiment further. Major US banks including JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, and Wells Fargo are all set to report quarterly results on Tuesday, providing the first detailed read on how financial institutions have navigated a period of elevated interest rates, inflation, and geopolitical disruption.

Continued fighting over the oil prices US Iran strikes backdrop has clouded the inflation outlook significantly. High bond yields have weighed on financial markets globally because more expensive oil and elevated inflation could push the Federal Reserve and other central banks to raise interest rates. Higher rates can help contain inflation but also slow economic growth and weigh on asset valuations across the board.

Asian Markets Sell Off Sharply

Asian equity markets sold off sharply on Monday. Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 1.9% to 67,242.73, while South Korea’s Kospi plunged 9% to 6,806.93 — its lowest level since early May.

South Korean memory chipmaker SK Hynix, whose shares had soared 13% on their Wall Street debut Friday, slumped 15.4% in Seoul. Its larger rival Samsung Electronics sank 10.7%. China’s Shanghai Composite shed 2.1% to 3,913.79, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng edged 0.2% higher. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 was nearly unchanged.

In Europe, Germany’s DAX and France’s CAC 40 each added 0.2% at midday, while Britain’s FTSE 100 was flat.