US Stocks Hold Steady While Oil Rises  03/17 15:38

   Oil prices resumed their rise on Tuesday because of the war with Iran, but 
U.S. stocks held steadier this time around.

   NEW YORK (AP) -- Oil prices resumed their rise on Tuesday because of the war 
with Iran, but U.S. stocks held steadier this time around.

   The S&P 500 rose 0.2% to add to its gain from the day before, which was its 
biggest since the war began. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 46 
points, or 0.1%, and the Nasdaq composite rose 0.5%.

   It's a break, for now at least, from the usual playbook since the start of 
the war, where stock prices have tended to go in the opposite direction of oil 
prices. The fear in financial markets has been that a long-term disruption to 
the global flow of oil could send prices so high for so long that it damages 
the global economy. Not only would higher gasoline prices sap household 
budgets, it could also push companies to pass on their own higher 
transportation costs to customers.

   On Tuesday, the price for a barrel of benchmark U.S. crude rose 2.9% to 
settle at $96.21. Brent crude, the international standard, climbed 3.2% to 
$103.42. But they pared even bigger gains from earlier in the morning, and 
they're either roughly where they were at the end of last week or below.

   Delta Air Lines offered an encouraging signal about the strength of the 
economy after raising its forecast for revenue for the first three months of 
2026. It said it's seen demand to fly accelerate into March from both 
businesses and households.

   And that looks to be enough to offset higher prices for jet fuel because of 
the spike in oil prices. Delta said it still expects to report a profit for the 
start of 2026 that's in line with its earlier forecast.

   Delta's stock flew 6.6% higher, and it helped other airline stocks trim 
their own sharp losses for the year so far. United Airlines climbed 3.2%, and 
Southwest Airlines rose 2.2%.

   American Airlines gained 3.5% after saying it's also likely to report 
stronger revenue growth for the start of this year than it had forecast earlier.

   Another big winner was Uber Technologies, which drove 4.2% higher after 
announcing an expansion of its partnership with Nvidia. They plan to launch a 
fleet of autonomous vehicles using Nvidia's technology, beginning with Los 
Angeles and San Francisco in the first half of next year.

   Some beaten-down stocks in the financial industry, meanwhile, recovered 
losses from earlier in the year. That includes several that got swept up in 
worries about whether software businesses and others potentially under threat 
by AI-powered competitors will pay back all their loans. Blue Owl Capital 
gained 4.5%, and Ares Management rose 6.6%.

   They helped offset a 3.2% drop for Cencora after the pharmaceutical sourcing 
and distribution services company said it's looking for a new chief financial 
officer. Its current CFO, James Cleary, will retire at the end of June.

   All told, the S&P 500 rose 16.71 points to 6,716.09. The Dow Jones 
Industrial Average added 46.85 to 46,993.26, and the Nasdaq composite gained 
105.35 to 22,479.53.

   The U.S. stock market has a track record of bouncing back relatively quickly 
from military conflicts in the Middle East and elsewhere, as long as oil prices 
don't stay too high for too long. Many professional investors are expecting 
that to be the case again, which has helped keep U.S. stock prices near their 
record levels.

   For all its dramatic swings over the last couple weeks, including several 
that struck hour to hour, the S&P 500 is less than 4% below its all-time high.

   That's even as Treasury yields have climbed on expectations that higher oil 
prices will prevent the Federal Reserve from cutting interest rates for a 
while. Higher yields push downward on prices for stocks and all kinds of 
investments.

   The yield on the 10-year Treasury eased to 4.20% from 4.23% late Monday, but 
it remains well above the 3.97% level it was at before the war with Iran began.

   The Fed will make its next announcement on interest rates Wednesday 
afternoon, and traders see virtually no chance of a cut, according to data from 
CME Group.

   Cuts to interest rates by the Fed would give the economy and job market a 
boost, and President Donald Trump has angrily been calling for them. But 
reductions would also worsen inflation.

   In Australia, the central bank is actually raising interest rates. Citing 
higher fuel prices, the Reserve Bank of Australia made its first hike since 
November 2023.

   In stock markets abroad, European indexes rose following a mixed finish in 
Asia. Indexes climbed 0.8% in London and fell 0.9% in Shanghai for two of the 
world's bigger moves.