US stock indices dropped on Monday, May 4, 2026, following escalating tensions in the Middle East conflict.
As of 11:45 a.m. Eastern Time, the S&P 500 fell 0.3%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.8%, and the Nasdaq Composite was 0.3% lower.
As of 10:30 a.m. Eastern Time, The S&P 500 rose 0.1%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.2%, and the Nasdaq Composite was 0.1% higher.
At the open, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 82.6 points, or 0.17%, to 49,416.66. The S&P 500 fell 1.7 points, or 0.02%, to 7,228.38, while the Nasdaq Composite dropped 2.3 points, or 0.01%, to 25,112.18.
Energy markets experienced more pronounced volatility. Brent crude oil surged 2.90% to $111.31 per barrel, briefly touching $114 during morning trade. The surge followed warnings from the Iranian military that US forces would face retaliation if they entered the Strait of Hormuz. This rhetoric comes in response to President Donald Trump’s pledge to provide safe passage for stranded ships.
Conflicting reports regarding a purported Iranian strike on a vessel further intensified the geopolitical friction.
Despite the standoff, the US military dismissed Iranian claims of a successful strike, later reporting that two American-flagged merchant vessels had safely navigated the strait. The ongoing closure of this vital waterway has severely restricted global oil supply, keeping prices elevated.
In the bond market, the yield on the 10-year Treasury climbed to 4.41% from Friday’s 4.39%.
On the corporate front, earnings and M&A news drove individual stock movements.
This week, high-profile reports from Disney, Pfizer, and McDonald’s are set to provide a pulse check on global consumer health and industrial stability.
Investors now look ahead to the Labor Department’s April jobs report, scheduled for release on Friday, for further economic clarity.
Key Stock Movers
eBay shares jumped 5.6% following an ambitious $56 billion unsolicited bid from GameStop. The proposal offers $125 per share in a mix of cash and stock.
Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings saw its stock tumble 4.7%. Although the company beat profit estimates.
Tyson Foods dipped 2.2% despite reporting quarterly earnings and revenue that surpassed Wall Street expectations.
Among the tech and AI stocks, Micron Technology gained 7.6%, Oracle rallied 5.8%, Sandisk climbed 5.2%, and Super Micro Computer added 2.8%.
Bullion
declined on Monday as the persistent US-Iran conflict strengthened the American dollar and fueled concerns over global inflation.
By 8:51 a.m. ET (1251 GMT), spot gold was down 0.9% at $4,572.40 per ounce. US gold futures fell 1.3% to $4,583.70.
Among other metals, spot silver fell 1.9% to $73.94, platinum lost 0.9% to $1,971.05, and palladium shed 2.4% to $1,488.28.
“Gold dips again, primarily on the issues surrounding the Strait of Hormuz. The latest news clearly didn’t give the market confidence that everything is going to be okay and again raised the specter of inflation issues, along with fairly hawkish signals to the market on interest rates,” said Bart Melek, global head of commodity strategy at TD Securities.