NEW YORK, United States (US): US stocks closed mixed on Wednesday after US President, Donald Trump, declared that the US ceasefire with Iran was “over” and threatened additional military strikes, triggering a sharp rise in oil prices, reported Xinhua.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1.09 per cent to 52,348.39. The S&P 500 sank 0.28 per cent to 7,482.71. The Nasdaq Composite Index increased 0.2 per cent to 25,870.65.
Nine of the 11 primary S&P 500 sectors ended in the red, with materials and financials leading the laggards by dropping 2.49 per cent and 1.92 per cent, respectively.
Meanwhile, energy and technology were the only gainers by rising 1.45 per cent and 1.44 per cent, respectively.
Trump later reiterated his threat, stating that the US would “hit them hard tonight”. The escalation in rhetoric heightened geopolitical uncertainty in West Asia.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Esmaeil Baqaei, wrote Wednesday on X that the US “has challenged this clause and, in practice, violated the agreement’s structure through its unilateral actions as well as aggressive attacks against Iran. The Islamic Republic of Iran will steadfastly pursue the protection of its national interests and the exercise of its sovereignty”.
Oil prices advanced after the developments. West Texas Intermediate for August delivery gained USD3.08, or 4.37 per cent, to settle at USD73.52 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Brent crude for September delivery added USD3.86, or 5.2 per cent, to settle at USD78.02 a barrel on the London ICE Futures Exchange.
In corporate news, Apple announced a new multi-year agreement to purchase at least USD30 billion worth of chips from Broadcom. Broadcom rose nearly 5 per cent in mid-afternoon trading, while Apple shares gained nearly 1 per cent.
Attention also turned to the Federal Reserve’s June meeting minutes, released Wednesday afternoon, which revealed divisions among policymakers regarding whether to raise interest rates and whether current policy is sufficiently restrictive.
Fed Chair, Kevin Warsh, has signalled that the central bank will refrain from providing forward guidance.
“Several participants remarked that they did not see the current policy stance as restrictive, while a few other participants commented that they saw the current policy stance as slightly restrictive,” the minutes said.
The implied probability of an interest rate hike by September increased to 68.8 per cent as of Wednesday afternoon, up from 62 per cent the prior day, with odds surging to 85.3 per cent by December, according to CME Group’s FedWatch tool.
The combination of renewed geopolitical risks and uncertainty over the Fed’s policy path contributed to a cautious tone across Wall Street. – BERNAMA-XINHUA
