Stock market bounces off lows as investors weigh Middle East flare up - MarketWatch

U.S. stocks traded mostly lower Monday for a second session, but were off their worst levels, as investors focused on escalating tensions in the Middle East, in the aftermath of the killing of Iranian Major Gen. Qassem Soleimani on Iraqi soil.

How are benchmarks performing?

The Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA, -0.04% fell 59 points, or 0.2%, at 28,577, the S&P 500 index SPX, +0.09% retreated about a point to 3,234, while the Nasdaq Composite Index COMP, +0.23% rose 13 points or 0.2%, at 9,034. All three benchmarks opened the session firmly lower.

On Friday, the Dow shed 233.92 points, or 0.8%, at 28,634.8. The S&P 500 fell 23 points, or 0.7%, to 3,234.85. The Nasdaq Composite slipped 71.42 points, or 0.8%, to 9,020.77. All three benchmarks finished off their lows for the session, however.

That decline marked the worst for the Dow and the S&P 500 since Dec. 3 and the sharpest daily slump for the Nasdaq since Dec. 2, according to Dow Jones Market Data.

Read: What stock market investors need to know about intensifying U.S.-Iran tensions

For the week, the S&P 500 lost 0.2%, while the Dow shed less than 0.1%. The Nasdaq, meanwhile, managed a weekly gain of 0.2%.

What’s driving the market?

Appetite for assets considered risky have been somewhat tempered as investors weigh the implications for the death of the Iranian general and its effect on geopolitics in the oil-rich Middle East.

Equity benchmarks mostly were adding to losses last week as President Donald Trump threatened sanctions and demanded compensation from Iraq for U.S. military forces, after Baghdad said it may push American forces out of the country following the killing of Soleimani on Friday.

“We have a very extraordinarily expensive air base that’s there. It cost billions of dollars to build. Long before my time. We’re not leaving unless they pay us back for it,” Trump said on Sunday.

Separately, the president said that the U.S. is prepared to target 52 Iranian sites if Iran strikes any Americans or American assets.

Soleimani was the head of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard’s Quds Force, and the U.S. has said the strike was aimed at deterring future Iranian attacks orchestrated by the top general.

“Clearly geopolitical risks are negatively impacting equity prices,” Terry Sandven, chief equity strategist for U.S. Bank Wealth Management told MarketWatch. “It’s reason for equities to trend off some, until markets get greater visibility in terms of what the next sequence of events will be in that region.”

That said, there’s reason to hope that the conflict won’t have lasting impact on the market. Stephen Innes, chief market strategist at AxiTrader pointed out in a daily research note that “U.S. equity markets tend to rally whenever the U.S. begins military operations overseas.”

Meanwhile, “the fundamental backdrop for stocks remains positive,” Sandven argued, citing low unemployment, brisk consumer spending and low interest rates as reasons for investors to bid equities higher in the coming weeks, though he predicted that these gains would come amid higher volatility.

Looking ahead, Chinese officials are set to arrive in Washington on Jan. 13 for a four-day meeting with U.S. counterparts, to sign a preliminary trade pact to end their protracted tariff conflict — a trade clash that had been a the center of investors’ minds before the Mideast worries. The South China Morning Post reported that China had planned to arrive earlier, but delayed their plans after President Trump announced a Jan. 15 date for the signing of the deal.

Over the weekend, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi reportedly urged restraint and said it opposed the use of force in international relations, according to a post on the website of China’s Foreign Ministry. The report also indicated that Yi spoke to Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif.

Read: Who was Qassem Soleimani, and why is his death a major development in U.S.-Middle East relations?

Also see: Strait of Hormuz, the world’s biggest oil chokepoint, in focus as U.S.-Iran tensions flare

In economic data, the IHS Markit purchasing managers index for the U.S. services sector came in at 52.8 in December, versus 51.6 in November, indicating continued expansion.

Which stocks are in focus?

Boeing Co. BA, -0.05% is considering plans to raise more debt to bolster finances strained by the grounding of its 737 MAX jets, according to The Wall Street Journal. Shares of the airplane maker and defense contractor were down 0.8% Monday.

Shares of fellow Dow component Apple Inc. AAPL, +0.49%  were up 0.7%, after six consecutive weeks of gains during which the consumer electronics company’s stock rose more than 11%.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. GS, +0.40%  and Morgan Stanley MS, -0.54%  are being investigated by the Bank of England, Sky News reported Saturday. A Financial Times report Sunday said the reviews were focused on the banks’ financial reporting practices. Goldman shares were down 0.2% Monday, while Morgan Stanley shares fell 0.8%.

Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. BBBY, +2.05% shares were in focus after The Wall Street Journal reported that the home-goods retailer has signed a deal to sell roughly half its real estate to a private-equity firm and lease back the space in a transaction that will generate more than $250 million in proceeds. Its shares were up 4.4% Monday morning.

Shares of Cal-Maine Foods Inc. CALM, -8.50%  skidded 10.4% Monday, after the egg producer reported a surprise loss during its fiscal second quarter, while sales fell 10.7%.

How are other markets trading?

Oil futures CLG20, +0.24%  continued to rise, with the U.S. benchmark West Texas Intermediate crude for February delivery gaining 0.1% to $63.11 a barrel, after finishing Friday at its best level in more than seven months.

Need to Know: Why oil could hit $80 even without a ‘full-blown’ U.S.-Iran war

Gold prices GCG20, +1.07% flirted with a near seven-year high at $1,566 ounce, up 0.9%, according to FactSet data.

The yield on the 10-year U.S. Treasury note TMUBMUSD10Y, +0.20%  fell about 1.4 basis point to 1.776% amid rising geopolitical tensions. Bond yields move inversely to prices.

In Asia overnight, stocks closed lower, with the China CSI 300 000300, -0.38%  declining 0.4%, Japan’s Nikkei 225 NIK, -1.91%  ending the session 1.9% lower and the Hang Seng HSI, -0.79%  own 0.8%.

In Europe stocks were also under pressure, as reflected by the 0.5% decline in the Stoxx Europe 600 SXXP, -0.41%.

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Stock market bounces off lows as investors weigh Middle East flare up - MarketWatch
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