Stocks Slip, Oil Holds Above $100 as Iran Tensions Cloud Sentiment

Investor sentiment weakened as Iran denied negotiations and renewed strikes with Israel, keeping oil elevated and equities under pressure.
Stocks Slip, Oil Holds Above $100 as Iran Tensions Cloud Sentiment
Traders work on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York, on March 6, 2026. Reuters/Brendan McDermid
Tom Ozimek
Tom Ozimek
Reporter
|Updated:
0:00

U.S. stocks opened lower while oil prices held above $100 a barrel on March 24, as lingering doubts over easing Middle East tensions weighed on sentiment, tempering a relief rally from the previous session despite President Donald Trump’s delaying strikes on Iran’s power grid and energy infrastructure, citing progress in peace talks.

At the open, Wall Street’s main indexes gave back some of the prior session’s gains that followed Trump’s decision to extend by five days his weekend ultimatum for Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz within 48 hours, after he pointed to “productive” discussions with Tehran.

Tom Ozimek
Tom Ozimek
Reporter
Tom Ozimek is a senior reporter for The Epoch Times. He has a broad background in journalism, deposit insurance, marketing and communications, and adult education.
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