[New York Stock Market] Three Major Indices Open Lower Amid Rising U.S.-Iran War Fears

Iran Holds Joint Military Drills with Russia
AI Concerns Also Weigh on Investor Sentiment
Microsoft, Broadcom, Walmart Gain

On the 19th (local time), the three major U.S. indices all opened lower.

As tensions between Iran and the United States have escalated over nuclear negotiations, the three major U.S. indices in the New York stock market all opened lower on the 19th (local time).

As of 10:18 a.m. on the same day at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 181.23 points, or 0.36%, from the previous trading day at 49,481.43. The large-cap S&P 500 Index was trading at 6,864.76, down 16.55 points, or 0.24%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite was at 22,709.76, down 43.88 points, or 0.19%.

Among the top stocks by market capitalization, Nvidia was down 0.28%, Apple 0.17%, TSMC 0.80%, and Meta 0.09%. In contrast, Microsoft (MS) was up 1.19%, Walmart 1.79%, Broadcom 1.15%, and Alphabet Class A 0.22%.

Investor sentiment appears to have weakened as the United States, while engaged in nuclear talks with Iran, has stepped up military pressure by deploying two aircraft carrier strike groups to the Middle East and repositioning key fighter squadrons. On the same day, Iran conducted joint military drills with Russia in the Strait of Hormuz, further heightening tensions.

Dennis Polmer, Chief Investment Officer at Montis Financial, said, "There may be some volatility in the early stages due to the Iran conflict, but we expect the market to overcome this soon," adding, "The likelihood of a diplomatic resolution is high, and the volatility from an armed clash is also expected to be quite limited, so we do not see a need to change portfolios."

At the same time, persistent concerns over artificial intelligence (AI) are also dragging down the indices. On Wall Street, there are worries that U.S. big tech companies, despite their massive investments, may fail to generate enough profit to justify the capital they are pouring in. On the other hand, anxiety is also growing that AI could encroach on a wide range of industries.

On this day, Walmart's share price rose about 2% following the release of its fourth-quarter earnings. For the fourth quarter of the last fiscal year, Walmart posted earnings per share (EPS) of $0.74, beating the market consensus of $0.73. Revenue came in at $190.66 billion, exceeding the market expectation of $190.43 billion.

eBay (EBAY) also surged 7.8% after raising its revenue outlook and announcing the acquisition of fashion platform Depop, while DoorDash soared about 10% as its first-quarter total order value guidance surpassed market expectations.

Market attention is now focused on the Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) index to be released on the 20th. The PCE is the inflation gauge most favored by the Federal Reserve (Fed), and the market is closely watching it because it can provide clues about the future path of the benchmark interest rate.