Washington, March 08: US shares sank today as Libya veered toward civil war and unrest continued to roil across Arab countries, driving crude oil above $106 a barrel in New York.
“Oil continues to call the shots for the equity market and has left economics news secondary in investors’ minds,” said Scott Marcouiller at Wells Fargo Advisors.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 70.95 points (0.66 per cent) to settle at 12,090.03.
The S&P 500 index, a broader measure of the markets, fell 11.02 points (0.83 per cent) to 1310.13, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite shed 39.04 points (1.40 percent) at 2745.63.
“We expect global stock prices will remain volatile following daily moves in crude oil futures prices. The situation in the Middle East remains very volatile. Thus, we expect further upward pressure in crude oil prices in coming days,” said Frederic Dickson at DA Davidson & Co.
“Until this situation unwinds, we expect US stock prices to remain range-bound with sell-offs and rallies remaining short and news-driven.”
——–Agencies