Finance

Brent crude surged over 4% to close above $104 a barrel following a fresh tanker attack in the Persian Gulf. Although crude prices temporarily retraced after President Trump noted that the U.S. would not launch military actions against Iran before the upcoming midterm elections, energy markets remain highly volatile.

Major stock benchmarks ended mixed as the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite dropped 1.3% and the S&P 500 fell 0.5%, marking their second consecutive day of losses. In contrast, the blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average managed to eke out a modest 0.1% gain as retreating Treasury yields provided slight relief to non-tech sectors.

Long-term government bond yields pulled back late in the session after a $22 billion auction of 30-year Treasury bonds met with strong investor demand. The successful sale alleviated earlier pressure on the fixed-income market, where the 10-year yield had initially climbed to 5.35% due to heightened inflation concerns and hawkish statements from Federal Reserve officials.