U.S. Stocks Slide and Oil Prices Swing Amid Ongoing Conflict with Iran

Wall Street dips slightly as volatile crude markets fuel inflation concerns, while investors await upcoming government data to gauge the Federal Reserve's next interest rate move.

U.S. stocks slipped a bit further from their records Tuesday, while oil prices kept swinging on uncertainty about when the war with Iran will allow crude to flow freely again.

The S&P 500 fell 0.3% for a second modest drop since setting its all-time high on Friday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 184 points (0.3%) and the Nasdaq composite sank 0.6%.

The oil market price for a barrel of Brent crude briefly jumped above $90 in the morning before falling back below $87. It eventually settled at $88.91, up 1.4% from Monday. Last month alone, Brent?s price veered between $72 and $102 per barrel. Higher oil prices make inflation worse and they?ve sent the average cost for a gallon of regular gasoline to $4.01, according to AAA. That?s up from less than $3.14 a year ago, though it?s down from last week?s nearly $4.09.

The U.S. government will release the latest monthly reading on inflation. Economists expect it to show inflation remains high but that it decelerated to 3.4% in July from 3.5% in June. That could help the Federal Reserve whose members are notably split on whether they should be raising the country?s interest rates to keep a lid on inflation.

On Holding dropped 20.3% even though the Swiss sneaker company reported a better profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected. It gave a forecast for upcoming revenue that fell short of analysts? expectations while didn?t want to slash prices to drum up more sales. Aramark rallied 8.5% after reporting stronger profit and revenue for the latest quarter than analysts expected. Cardinal Health added 1.3% after topping analysts? profit expectations for the spring.

In stock markets abroad, indexes were mixed in Europe and Asia. Hong Kong?s Hang Seng fell 1.1% for one of the world?s bigger moves.

Treasury yields have jumped since the war with Iran because of higher oil prices and worries about inflation, sending long-term mortgage rates to their highest levels in a year. The 10-year Treasury yield eased back Tuesday, falling to 4.69% from 4.72% late Monday. But it remains well above its 3.97% level from before the war with Iran.

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