Dow Jones Today | US Stock Market LIVE Updates: Anthropic sues Trump administration over Pentagon blacklist; Dow Jones dives 500 points

Dow Jones Today | US Stock Market LIVE Updates: US stocks dropped on Monday (March 9), continuing on from the biggest weekly drop since October, as the prospect of a prolonged war in Iran sent energy prices soaring and stoked fears over inflation. The S&P 500 Index dropped 1.1% at 9:38 a.m. in New York, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 Index fell 1.0%. Brent crude soared 9.1% to $101 a barrel as Saudi Arabia, the world’s largest oil exporter, started to reduce oil production. The move by the kingdom follows the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Iraq.

Oil prices spiked near $120 per barrel before falling back on Monday as the Iran war intensified, threatening production and shipping in the Middle East and pummeling financial markets. The price for a barrel of Brent crude, the international standard, surged to $119.50 per barrel early in the day but later was trading near $105 per barrel. West Texas Intermediate, the light, sweet crude oil produced in the United States, spiked at $119.48 per barrel but fell back to $102 per barrel.