The Daily Populous Friday March 6th, 2026 morning edition
Authored by edition.cnn.com and submitted by nicktheironblade

Stocks sank, volatility picked up and oil prices surged to their highest level since mid-2024 as concerns about a prolonged war with Iran continue to roil markets.

The Dow closed lower by 785 points, or 1.61%, recouping some losses in the afternoon after briefly falling more than 1,100 points. The S&P 500 sank 0.56% and the tech-heavy Nasdaq fell 0.26%, paring earlier losses but finishing the day slightly lower.

US crude oil prices jumped 8.5%, to just over $81 per barrel, posting their biggest single-day gain since May 2020. Brent crude, the international benchmark, climbed 4.93%, to $85.41 per barrel.

US crude and Brent prices have gained more than 20% and 17% this week, respectively, as nerves persist about disruptions to the flow of oil through the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow waterway off the coast of Iran through which 20% of global oil consumption usually flows everyday.

The war in the Middle East appears to have completely stopped the flow of oil tankers through the Strait of Hormuz as insurers and tankers are unwilling to risk sailing through it during the conflict. Zero oil tankers transited the critical waterway on Wednesday, according to S&P Global Commodities at Sea data shared with CNN.

US natural gas and diesel futures rose nearly 3% and 7%, respectively. Higher energy prices could stoke inflation, complicating the outlook for the Federal Reserve and posing trouble for stocks.

“There remains a high level of uncertainty over the potential length of the conflict and scale of disruption to global energy supplies,” Lee Hardman, senior currency economist at MUFG, said in a note.

The key issues for markets are whether transit through the Strait of Hormuz will be able to resume as well as trying to assess the duration of the war, said Rob Haworth, senior investment strategy director at US Bank Asset Management.

“The market has been hoping that this will be short,” Haworth said. “Iran continues to try and expand the sphere of conflict, and that could further dampen risk sentiment if it goes longer and broils more.”

The Dow suffered a sharper decline than the S&P and Nasdaq as Goldman Sachs (GS) and Caterpillar (CAT), the two companies with the largest weighting in the Dow, each fell more than 3.5%.

Stocks in Europe were also lower: The region’s benchmark Stoxx 600 index sank 1.29% and Germany’s DAX index fell 1.61%.

The US dollar strengthened against other major currencies, benefiting from investors seeking safe havens. The dollar index is up 1.5% this week.

Treasury yields climbed as investors sold bonds and weighed the potential inflationary impact of higher oil prices. The 10-year Treasury yield hit 4.13%, its highest level in three weeks.

Wall Street’s fear gauge, the VIX, surged 11%. “Fear” was the sentiment driving markets, according to CNN’s Fear and Greed Index.

“We’ve seen no signs of de-escalation yet, and oil prices are continuing to move higher,” Jim Reid, global head of macro research at Deutsche Bank, said in a note.

A popular exchange-traded fund tracking the airline industry dropped 4.8% and had its worst day since April.

TacticalRhodie on March 5th, 2026 at 20:41 UTC »

“But the DOW is over 50000”. Was is the key word. Was over 50000

alton_britches on March 5th, 2026 at 20:37 UTC »

Seems like it's a good time for this classic: https://theonion.com/this-war-will-destabilize-the-entire-mideast-region-and-1819594296/

sir-mivond on March 5th, 2026 at 20:34 UTC »

Who could have foreseen this turn of events?