Stocks Sink as Brent Crude Tops $100, Private Credit Worries Grow – US Market Wrap
A renewed surge in oil prices fueled fears the war in Iran will further disrupt energy supplies and push inflation higher, sending stocks lower while signs of strain emerged in the $1.8 trillion private-credit market.
Brent crude closed above $100 for the first time since 2022 as the blockage of the Strait of Hormuz choked off oil and gas shipments through the vital trade route. The S&P 500 dropped 1.5% to its lowest level since November. Bank shares slid after redemption requests at private-credit funds forced Morgan Stanley and Cliffwater to cap withdrawals. Deutsche Bank warned it has about $30 billion in exposure to the sector, while a gauge of megacap stocks neared correction territory.
Short-dated Treasuries fell as traders stopped fully pricing in a Federal Reserve rate cut in 2026. The yield on two-year notes rose nine basis points to 3.74%. Global bonds broadly erased their gains for the year. The dollar climbed to an almost two-month high, while gold declined.
Trump and Iran’s new supreme leader struck defiant tones on the 13th day of the conflict, offering little relief to energy markets despite US efforts to curb oil prices. Trump said preventing Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons and threatening the Middle East was “of far greater interest and importance” than oil costs. Mojtaba Khamenei said Iran intends to keep the Strait of Hormuz effectively closed.
The Trump administration is considering waiving a century-old maritime law requiring US ships to transport goods between American ports as it seeks to limit rising oil prices. The US Navy could begin escorting tankers through the Strait of Hormuz by the end of March, Energy Secretary Wright said.
Goldman Sachs warned oil could surpass its 2008 peak if flows through Hormuz remain restricted through March. Brent reached $147.50 that year. The Iran war is already disrupting about 7.5% of global oil supply and an even larger share of exports, according to the IEA.
