In an escalation of U.S.-Iran tensions, the U.S. has taken responsibility for airstrike on an Iraq airport that killed Iran’s top general Qassem Soleimani.
U.S. equity futures fell after President Trump ordered an airstrike on Iraq that killed an Iranian general.
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The major futures indexes are indicating a decline of 0.7 percent, which would shave more than 100 points off the Dow Industrials.
This comes after the first trading session of the new year sent Wall Street to new records.
Brent crude, used to price international oils, was up $1.93 at $68.18 per barrel after temporarily jumping nearly $3.
Benchmark U.S. crude was up nearly 3 percent or $1.73 at $62.91 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
News that Gen. Qassem Soleimani, head of Iran’s elite Quds Force, was killed in an air attack at the Baghdad international airport prompted expectations of Iranian retaliation against U.S. and Israeli targets.
Revolutionary Guard Gen. Qassem Soleimani (Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader via AP, File)
In Asian markets trading, China’s Shanghai Composite shed 0.1 percent and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng lost 0.2 percent. Japan’s markets remained closed.
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Investors were encouraged by expectations of stronger global economic growth in 2020 and the planned signing of an interim U.S.-Chinese trade agreement.
In Thursday’s Wall Street session, the benchmark S&P 500 index climbed 0.8 percent, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.2 percent and the Nasdaq gained 1.3 percent.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I:DJI | DOW JONES AVERAGES | 28868.8 | +330.36 | +1.16% |
| SP500 | S&P 500 | 3257.85 | +27.07 | +0.84% |
| I:COMP | NASDAQ COMPOSITE INDEX | 9092.188563 | +119.58 | +1.33% |
There was no immediate indication how Iran would respond to Soleimani’s death but Tehran has seized oil tankers and shot down a U.S. military drone.
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Washington blames Iran for attacks on tankers and a September assault on Saudi Arabia’s oil industry that temporarily cut its production by half.
The Associated Press contributed to this article.
