Wall St opens lower as Middle East clashes send oil prices up

Major Wall Street indices opened in negative territory on Monday morning as escalating geopolitical conflict in the Middle East rattled investor sentiment. The downturn followed military strikes between the United States and Iran, which triggered a sudden spike in crude oil benchmarks and renewed concerns over energy-driven inflationary pressures across global economies. At the opening bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 97.4 points, or 0.18%, to 53,462.6. Concurrently, the S&P 500 fell 14.2 points, or 0.18%, to open at 7,697.52, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite declined 43.9 points, or 0.17%, to 26,358.559. Crude oil prices surged in response to potential supply disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz, with Brent and WTI contracts rallying strongly alongside higher Treasury yields. Surging energy commodities are stoking fears of persistent inflation, prompting market participants to price in a more hawkish interest rate path from central banks. Heightened volatility and geopolitical risk continue to weigh heavily on broader equity markets as traders assess the duration of hostilities.