Dow, S&P 500 and Nasdaq book fourth straight day of losses as investors weigh ban on Russia oil imports Market Snapshot

By Christine Idzelis and William Watts

All three major U.S. stock benchmarks ended lower Tuesday, after a volatile trading session, with the S&P 500 index booking the session’s largest percentage drop, as investors weighed an American ban on imports of Russian oil and soaring commodity prices.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average, S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite each have fallen for four straight trading days, according to Dow Jones Market Data.

How did stock indexes perform?

The Dow Jones Industrial Average /zigman2/quotes/210598065/realtime DJIA +0.31% fell 184.74, or 0.6%, to close at 32,632.64.
The S&P 500 /zigman2/quotes/210599714/realtime SPX +0.48% fell 30.39 points, or 0.7%, to finish at 4,170.70.
The Nasdaq Composite /zigman2/quotes/210598365/realtime COMP +0.59% declined 35.41, or 0.3%, to end at 12,795.55.

Stocks fell sharply on Monday, with the S&P 500 logging its biggest daily drop since Oct. 28, 2020. The Dow’s decline saw the blue-chip gauge enter a market correction, as the benchmark was 11% lower than its Jan. 4 record high, while the Nasdaq entered a bear market , with the tech-heavy index down more than 20% from its record peak in November.

Read: A death cross for the S&P 500 is nearing as inflation fears, Russia’s Ukraine offensive rattles stock-market investors

What drove markets?

President Joe Biden announced a U.S. ban on Russian oil imports , ratcheting up pressure on Moscow in retaliation for its invasion of Ukraine as the war in eastern Europe continues to worry investors.

Russia’s deputy prime minister, Alexander Novak, said the country could cut vital natural gas supplies to Europe , and said oil prices could jump to $300 per barrel if the West imposed a ban on Russian oil.

“The great concern of war on the continent has everyone alarmed,” said John Lynch, chief investment officer at Comerica Wealth Management, in a phone interview Tuesday. Investors worry about the ways Russia’s invasion of Ukraine adds to already high inflation, he said, pointing to the jump in cost of commodities in areas such as metals, agriculture and energy.

Oil futures ended higher Tuesday , with West Texas Intermediate crude for April delivery rising 3.6% to settle at $123.70 a barrel. That’s the highest front-month contract finish since Aug. 1, 2008, according to Dow Jones Market Data.

Energy has been “part of our cyclical play” in the stock market, said Lynch. “It’s getting very expensive but it looks like there’s room to run.”

Shares of Chevron Corp. /zigman2/quotes/205871374/composite CVX +0.41% closed 5.2% higher Tuesday, while Exxon Mobil Corp. /zigman2/quotes/204455864/composite XOM +0.12% finished up 0.8%, according to FactSet data.

“The surge in oil prices has benefited U.S. energy stocks,” noted David Bahnsen, chief investment officer at the Bahnsen Group, in emailed comments. Energy /zigman2/quotes/210600058/delayed XX:SP500EW.10 +0.15% is the only one of the S&P 500’s 11 sectors in positive territory for 2022, soaring nearly 39% this year, FactSet data show.

“With higher prices, oil producers receive higher profits for their product. Even with the surge in oil prices, there are still additional opportunities in the energy stock sector, such as the midstream area, which is responsible for transporting and storing oil,” he said. “The transportation of energy plays a huge future of the U.S. energy story.”

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