U.S. stocks finished mixed on Wednesday as investors continued to monitor tensions in the Middle East. Major indices opened higher but closed lower, with the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average ending in negative territory. The S&P 500 declined for the second consecutive trading session. Core inflation in the U.S. for February eased compared to the previous month, suggesting price pressures moderated before the onset of conflict with Iran. However, concerns stemming from the war with Iran could amplify American anxieties about affordability.

In market performance, the Dow Jones fell by 289.24 points, or 0.61%, to close at 47,417.27. The Nasdaq Composite gained 19.03 points, or 0.08%, finishing at 22,716.13. The S&P 500 dropped 5.68 points, or 0.08%, to settle at 6,775.8.

Oil stocks showed strength, with Occidental Petroleum (OXY) rising 4%. ConocoPhillips (COP) and Chevron (CVX) each gained over 2%. Oracle (ORCL) surged more than 9%. The Nasdaq Golden Dragon China Index closed down 0.77%, though Li Auto (LI) advanced 3%.

In European markets, Germany's DAX 30 index fell 294.12 points, or 1.23%, to 23,641.20. The UK's FTSE 100 dropped 58.98 points, or 0.57%, to 10,353.26. France's CAC 40 declined 15.55 points, or 0.19%, to 8,041.81. The Euro Stoxx 50 decreased 40.72 points, or 0.70%, to 5,796.45. Spain's IBEX 35 fell 91.10 points, or 0.52%, to 17,353.90. Italy's FTSE MIB dropped 407.19 points, or 0.90%, to 44,794.50.

In Asia, Japan's Nikkei 225 rose 1.43%, while South Korea's KOSPI gained 1.4%. Indonesia's Jakarta Composite Index fell 0.69%.

In cryptocurrencies, Bitcoin increased 1.5% to $70,763.6. Ethereum rose over 2.1% to $2,071.91.

Crude oil futures climbed. The April West Texas Intermediate contract rose $3.80, or 4.55%, to settle at $87.25 per barrel. The May Brent crude contract increased $4.18, or 4.76%, to close at $91.98 per barrel.

The U.S. dollar index, which measures the dollar against a basket of six major currencies, rose 0.41% to 99.231. By the close of New York forex trading, one euro traded at $1.1569, down from $1.1644 the previous day. One pound traded at $1.3407, down from $1.3460. One dollar bought 158.89 Japanese yen, up from 157.63. It also traded at 0.7799 Swiss francs, up from 0.7770; 1.3587 Canadian dollars, up from 1.3570; and 9.2301 Swedish krona, up from 9.1371.

Spot gold settled at $5,177.17 per ounce. Spot silver settled at $85.739 per ounce.

On the macroeconomic front, U.S. inflation for February stabilized as expected, though an energy price surge threatens to keep March data elevated. The Labor Department reported that the Consumer Price Index rose 2.4% year-over-year in February, matching January's rate and economist expectations. Core prices, excluding food and energy, increased 2.5% annually, also meeting forecasts. However, since the conflict with Iran began, U.S. benchmark crude futures have been highly volatile, averaging around $82 per barrel so far this month compared to about $65 in February. Consequently, March inflation data could be hotter. According to RSM chief economist Joseph Brusuelas, a rule of thumb suggests that a $10 per barrel increase in oil prices raises the Labor Department's inflation reading by about 0.2 percentage points. While estimates vary slightly among economists, most agree oil prices will push March inflation higher. Economists also note that the annual inflation rate is currently artificially suppressed due to missing October housing cost data from last year's government shutdown. This downward bias is expected to disappear in April's report, causing the calculated inflation rate to rebound.

The Trump administration is preparing to announce new trade investigations, potentially rebuilding tariff barriers. Following the Supreme Court's rejection of a previous tariff plan, the administration plans to announce a series of investigations under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, to be executed by the U.S. Trade Representative. These investigations, reportedly focusing on issues like digital services taxes and alleged currency manipulation, would mark a significant step in rebuilding the administration's "tariff wall." Tariffs are a central pillar of Trump's economic policy. On the same day the Supreme Court blocked his tariff policy, Trump announced he would invoke another legal basis to impose a 10% temporary tariff on global goods for 150 days, later vowing to raise the base rate to 15%, though the higher rate has not yet been implemented.

The Congressional Budget Office projected the federal budget deficit for fiscal year 2026 at $1.9 trillion, growing to $3.1 trillion by 2036. Relative to economic size, the 2026 deficit is projected at 5.8% of GDP, increasing to 6.7% by 2036, above the 50-year average of 3.8%. Rising net interest costs are a primary driver of the increasing deficit.

The U.S. national average gasoline price rose to $3.58 per gallon, its highest level in over 21 months. Prices increased 38 cents over the past week and 64 cents over the past month, the largest weekly and monthly gains since March 2022. Prices are up about 22% from a month ago. Diesel prices rose even faster, with the average increasing 5 cents to $4.89 per gallon, up 79 cents over the past week.

The International Energy Agency announced it would release 400 million barrels of oil from emergency reserves, the largest such release in history. The IEA stated the Middle East conflict poses a "significant and rising risk" to oil markets. The stocks will come from mandatory reserves held by member countries, which are required to hold stocks equivalent to at least 90 days of the previous year's net imports, in the form of crude oil, refined products, or a combination. As of the end of 2025, IEA member countries held 1.25 billion barrels in public stocks, about 30% of total OECD petroleum inventories. This is the sixth emergency stock release ordered by the IEA since its founding in 1974.

The European Union warned that conflict could push EU inflation above 3%. If the war leads to Brent crude prices remaining around $100 per barrel and gasoline prices staying high for an extended period, EU inflation this year could exceed 3%, also impacting 2026 economic growth. EU Economy Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis reportedly told finance ministers this week that under such a scenario, growth would be 0.4 percentage points lower than the 1.4% forecast at the end of last year. Besides oil prices, the scenario assumes European natural gas prices remain around €75 per megawatt-hour for the rest of the year. This would mean inflation in 2026 would be 0.7 to 1 percentage point higher than the previously forecast 2.1%. Significantly higher inflation could force the European Central Bank to raise interest rates. The commissioner also warned that the conflict's impact on financial markets, trade, and supply chains could create further economic headwinds.

In corporate news, journalist Mark Gurman reported that Apple's (AAPL) upcoming foldable iPhone, expected this fall, will feature an iOS update enabling an iPad-like interface for the first time. The device is said to include a built-in foldable display similar in size to an iPad mini, plus an external screen comparable to a smaller iPhone display. The internal screen will use a widescreen aspect ratio, differing from the narrow format of current foldable phones, which is intended as a key selling point to enhance video viewing and facilitate app adaptation from iPhone to iPad.

President Trump is preparing to invoke Cold War-era authorities under the Defense Production Act to aid offshore oil producer Sable Offshore Corp. (SOC), aiming to streamline approvals for restarting large-scale production from a series of offshore platforms in California. This move is an attempt to address global crude supply shortages stemming from the Iran war. With midterm elections approaching, Trump faces significant political pressure to tackle rising fuel prices, a key voter concern.

Meta Platforms (META) unveiled four custom internal chips designed specifically for artificial intelligence tasks, part of its large-scale data center expansion plan. The first new chip, MTIA 300, was deployed weeks ago to help train smaller AI models that power core ranking and recommendation tasks. The upcoming MTIA 400, 450, and 500 chips are designed to handle more advanced generative AI inference tasks, such as creating images and videos from text prompts.