Renewed Hostilities in the Persian Gulf Dragged Down Stocks, Bonds, and Crude Oil

Barry Adams
20 Apr, 2026
New York City

Stocks on Wall Street faced renewed headwinds in Monday's trading after tensions in the Middle East escalated. 

The S&P 500 Index decreased 0.4%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite declined 0.6% amid renewed hostilities in the Persian Gulf. 

The West Intermediate Texas crude oil price jumped by 6% to $89.00 a barrel after the U.S. seized an Iranian-flagged vessel in the Gulf of Oman over the weekend.

Meanwhile, Iran shut down the Strait of Hormuz and prolonged the disruption of traffic. 

Despite the lingering hostilities in the Middle East, stock market indexes around the world advanced for the third week in a row and extended the rebound to more than 10% at the end of last week.

The Nasdaq Composite increased 7% and the S&P 500 index advanced 5%, and benchmark indexes in Europe jumped around 4% after choppy trading last week. 

The U.S.-Iran war, started by Israel, has disrupted the supply of LNG and crude oil to Asia and inflicted severe damage to industries in India, Japan, and South Korea.

In addition, jet fuel prices have more than doubled in Asia after China curtailed shipment of refined energy products. 

Moreover, advanced semiconductor makers in Taiwan, Japan, and South Korea are experiencing shortages of industrial gases, forcing producers to curtail memory module production. 

The bond market showed little reaction to renewed hostilities in the Persian Gulf, and the yield on the 10-year Treasury note edged up slightly to 4.26%. 

 

U.S. Movers

Airlines and oil producers charted different courses after crude oil prices soared more than 5% in New York and London trading. 

Delta Air Lines, United Air, American Airlines, and Jet Blue Airways decreased 3%. 

Exxon Mobil, Chevron, and ConocoPhillips advanced between 1% and 2% in Monday's trading in New York.