US stock market trend | Dow Jones closes down 739 points, bank stocks plummet

Gulf oil tankers and cargo ships have been attacked one after another, causing Brent crude oil to once again surpass $100 per barrel. Iran’s new Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, has threatened to keep the Strait of Hormuz closed and warned that if the war continues, new frontlines will open. U.S. stocks were significantly pressured on Thursday, with the Dow dropping over 700 points; the so-called “fear index” VIX spiked by 12.3% to 27.22.

Private Equity Redemptions Limit; Morgan Stanley Cuts 4%

After opening down 174 points, the Dow’s decline widened to as much as 755 points, hitting a low of 46,662. The S&P 500 once fell 1.56%, mainly driven by tech stocks, while the Nasdaq dropped 1.87%. Meanwhile, NYMEX crude oil surged up to 11.39%, reaching a high of $97.19 per barrel, closing at $95.73, up 9.72%; Brent crude rose 9.2%, closing at $100.46, with an intraday high of $101.8. Spot gold briefly fell 1.86%, trading at $5,079.92 per ounce.

Mojtaba Khamenei: Continue to Close the Strait of Hormuz

Morgan Stanley and Cliffwater restricted redemptions from their private equity funds, triggering a new wave of selling in large banks and alternative asset managers. Morgan Stanley’s stock closed down 4.1%, Goldman Sachs fell 4.4%, the largest decline among Dow components, Citigroup dropped over 3%, Blue Owl and KKR declined 4.5% and 3.7%, respectively. Additionally, Deutsche Bank disclosed its exposure to the private credit market reached €26 billion, with its stock dropping over 5%.

Brent Oil Reaches $100 per Barrel Again

Among major tech stocks, Nvidia, Apple, and Tesla fell 1.5%, 1.9%, and 3.1%, respectively. Oil stocks like Chevron rebounded 2.7%, making it the strongest Dow component, while Walmart gained 1.5%.

At the close, U.S. markets declined: Dow down 739 points or 1.56% to 46,677; S&P 500 down 1.52% to 6,672; Nasdaq fell 1.78% to 22,311; the Golden Dragon Index, reflecting Chinese concept stocks, retraced 1.02% to 7,094. European stocks were mixed, with UK, France, and Germany down 0.47%, 0.71%, and 0.21%, respectively. Bitcoin briefly fell 2.02% to $69,221.

Nvidia, Apple Drop Over 1%; Tesla Falls 3.1%

The 10-year U.S. Treasury yield rose as much as 7 basis points to 4.277%, while the 2-year yield surged 12.6 basis points to 3.762%. The U.S. dollar index rose 0.52% to 99.75, while the euro declined 0.49% to $1.1511. The yen fell 0.31% to 159.44 per dollar.

In economic data, initial jobless claims for the week ending March 7 decreased by 1,000 to 213,000, below the expected 215,000. Continuing claims for the week ending February 28 fell by 21,000 to 1.85 million, slightly above the forecast of 1.849 million.

Two-Year U.S. Treasury Yield Surges Over 12 Basis Points

U.S. January trade deficit narrowed from December’s $72.9 billion to $54.5 billion, well below the estimated $66 billion. Imports decreased by 0.7%, exports increased by 5.5%. New housing starts in January rose 7.2% month-over-month to an annualized rate of 1.487 million, exceeding the forecast of 1.341 million. Building permits, however, fell 5.4% to 1.376 million, below the expected 1.41 million.