Stock market today: Dow, S&P 500, Nasdaq futures fall as four week down spiral continues, Trump threatens Iran

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LIVE Updated 8 mins ago

Rian Howlett · Front Page Editor

1 min read

US stock futures slid Sunday evening with the US-Israeli war in Iran maintaining downward pressure after US equities notched a fourth consecutive week of losses.

Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average (YM=F) dropped 143 points, or 0.3%. S&P 500 futures (ES=F) declined 0.4%, while Nasdaq 100 futures (NQ=F) fell 0.5%.

For the week, the Dow (^DJI) and Nasdaq (^IXIC) each dropped roughly 2%, while the S&P 500 (^GSPC) lost 1.5%. The Dow’s four-week skid marks its longest losing streak since 2023.

The move lower comes as the Iran conflict enters its fourth week, with risks intensifying over the weekend. President Donald Trump has openly stated “I don’t want to do a ceasefire” as violent rhetoric between the US and Iran intensifies with little signs of slowing. Trump also stated that if the Strait of Hormuz remains closed he will order attacks on Iranian energy infrastructure in a deviation from the US war plan to date.

Oil markets continue to rise, with knock on spikes in consumer spending, the Fed’s inflation outlook, and across industries. West Texas Intermediate (CL=F) crude futures rose 0.5%, while Brent (BZ=F) crude, the global benchmark, climbed 0.5% to over $110 a barrel.

Market outlook is increasingly defensive with Friday bringing an update to the University of Michigan’s consumer sentiment index alongside reports on short and long-term inflation expectations.

In economic releases, attention will also turn to the S&P Global Flash US PMI report due Tuesday, with clues on how businesses are responding to mounting uncertainty.

LIVE 1 update

Oil traded slight below last week’s closing prices at the start of futures trading on Sunday, with roughly 24 hours to go on President Trump’s 48-hour ultimatum to Iran.

Futures prices on Brent crude (BZ=F), the international pricing benchmark, initially surged but quickly gave up gains in the minutes after the open on Sunday, trading around $106 per barrel. Those on US benchmark West Texas Intermediate crude (CL=F) changed hands around $97.90 per barrel.

In a post on Truth Social at 6:45 p.m. ET on Saturday, President Trump said Iran had 48 hours to “FULLY OPEN, WITHOUT THREAT, the Strait of Hormuz,” or else “within 48 HOURS from this exact point in time, the United States of America will hit and obliterate their various POWER PLANTS, STARTING WITH THE BIGGEST ONE FIRST!”

The threat by the US president comes after a week of attacks by the Iranian regime against energy infrastructure throughout the Gulf, including Qatar’s Ras Laffan LNG export terminal — the world’s largest such facility.

In a note to clients on Sunday evening, Goldman Sachs’ oil desk, led by head of oil research Daan Struyven, raised its price targets for oil, now looking for Brent to trade at $110 per barrel through March and April, up from a previous call for $98 per barrel over the same timeframe under the assumption that “Hormuz flows remain at only 5% of normal levels for a longer 6-week period before a gradual 1-month recovery.”

The bank is now assuming an average 2026 price of $85 and $79 per barrel, respectively, for Brent and WTI, up from previous estimate of $77 and $72 per barrel for the two benchmarks. In 2027, Goldman expects Brent and WTI to average $80 and $75 per barrel, respectively.

“In the short-run, the market is likely to require a growing risk premium to generate precautionary demand destruction to hedge against shortages in longer disruptions risk scenarios,” Goldman’s Struyven, Yulia Grigsby, and Alexandra Paulus wrote.

“A recognition of the risks from the high concentration of production and spare capacity is likely to lead to structurally higher strategic stockpiling and long-dated prices.”

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