By ELAINE KURTENBACH, AP Business Writer
BANGKOK (AP) — Share prices skidded in Europe and Asia on Tuesday after Israel’s military issued an evacuation warning to 330,000 people in Iran’s capital Tehran. U.S. futures also declined.
Oil prices gained more than $1 a barrel after the warning for a part of the city of 9.5 million that houses Iran’s state TV and police headquarters and three large hospitals, including one owned by the country’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard.
The evacuation warning was for a part of Tehran that houses the country’s state TV and police headquarters and three large hospitals, including one owned by Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard. U.S. President Donald Trump announced he was returning from the G7 summit in Canada a day early due to the intensifying conflict.
The futures for the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average were down 0.6%.
In early European trading, Germany’s DAX sank 1.3% to 23,380.79, while the CAC 40 in Paris dropped 0.9% to 7,669.44. Britain’s FTSE 100 gave up 0.5% to 8,833.00.
As Israel and Iran attack each other, the fear remains that a wider war could constrict the flow of Iran’s oil to its customers. That in turn could raise gasoline prices worldwide and keep them high, though spikes in prices from previous conflicts have been brief.
Crude jumped 7% late last week after Israel’s attack on Iranian nuclear and military targets. Early Tuesday, U.S. benchmark crude oil gained $1.05 to $72.82 per barrel, while Brent crude, the international standard, was up $1.13 at $74.34 per barrel.
The mood was calm Monday on Wall Street, as the S&P 500 climbed 0.9% to reclaim most of its drop from Friday. The Dow industrials added 0.8% and the Nasdaq composite gained 1.5%.
U.S. Steel rose 5.1% after Trump signed an executive order on Friday paving the way for an investment in the company by Japan’s Nippon Steel. Trump would have unique influence over the operations of U.S. Steel under the terms of the deal.
The price of gold receded after jumping on Friday, when investors were looking for someplace safe to park their cash. An ounce of gold fell $18.40 to $3,398.70 per ounce.
Investors have other concerns, key among them Trump’s tariffs, which still threaten to slow the U.S. economy and raise inflation if Washington doesn’t win trade deals with other countries.
The specter of those tariffs was looming over the Group of Seven meeting of major economies in Canada.
Later this week, the Federal Reserve is set to discuss whether to lower or raise interest rates, with the decision due on Wednesday. The nearly unanimous expectation among traders and economists is that the Fed will stand pat.
In other dealings early Tuesday, the U.S. dollar rose to 144.80 Japanese yen from 144.75 yen. The euro fell to $1.1557 from $1.1562.