WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - After moving sharply lower early in the session, stocks have shown a notable recovery over the course of the trading day on Thursday. The major averages have climbed well off their lows of the session, briefly reaching positive territory.
Currently, the major averages are posting modest losses. The Dow is down 101.63 points or 0.2 percent at 46,464.11, the Nasdaq is down 41.85 points or 0.2 percent at 21,799.10 and the S&P 500 is down 6.78 points or 0.1 percent at 6,568.54.
The early weakness on Wall Street came amid renewed concerns about an escalation of the conflict in the Middle East following President Donald Trump's primetime address Wednesday night.
While Trump's speech largely echoed his recent comments and Truth Social posts, traders seemed to respond negatively to the tone of his remarks.
The president reiterated his claim that the war will be over 'very shortly' but also said the U.S. is going to hit Iran 'extremely hard over the next two to three weeks,' bringing the country 'back to the stone ages where they belong.'
Trump also once again called on other countries to 'build up some delayed courage' and take control of the vital Strait of Hormuz, claiming, 'The hard part is done.'
After moving sharply lower over the past two days amid optimism an end to the conflict, crude oil prices skyrocketed in reaction to Trump's speech, with U.S. crude oil futures spiking by more than 9 percent.
However, stocks bounced well off their worst levels after a report from Iranian state news agency IRNA said Iran and Oman are drafting a protocol to 'monitor transit' through the Strait of Hormuz.
Kazem Gharibabadi, Iran's deputy minister of legal and international affairs, said the requirements are meant to 'facilitate and ensure safe passage and provide better services to ships that pass through this route,' according to a translation of IRNA's report.
Sector News
Networking stocks have moved sharply higher over the course of the session, driving the NYSE Arca Networking Index up by 3.2 percent to a record intraday high.
The sharp increase by the price of crude oil is also contributing to strength among energy stocks, with the NYSE Arca Oil Index and the Philadelphia Oil Service Index climbing by 1.6 percent and 1.3 percent, respectively.
Computer hardware and telecom stocks are also seeing some strength on the day, while airline stocks have come under pressure, dragging the NYSE Arca Airline Index down by 2.4 percent.
Other Markets
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly lower during trading on Thursday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index tumbled by 2.4 percent, while China's Shanghai Composite Index slid by 0.7 percent.
The major European markets have also moved to the downside on the day. While the German DAX Index is down by 2.4 percent, the French CAC 40 Index is down by 1.4 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index is down by 0.6 percent.
In the bond market, treasuries have moved higher over the course of the session after seeing early weakness. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, is down by 2.4 basis points at 4.295 percent.
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