Wall St ends sharply lower on intensifying Iran war, soaring crude

The Dow fell 739.42 points, or 1.56%, to 46,677.85, the S&P 500 lost 103.22 points, or 1.52%, to 6,672.58 and the Nasdaq lost 404.15 points, or 1.78%, to 22,311.98. — Reuters

NEW YORK: US stocks fell on Thursday, as Iranian strikes on two oil tankers sent crude prices surging toward US$100 per barrel, further exacerbating inflation fears and sending investors fleeing equity markets.

All three major US stock indices slid more than 1.5% in a broad selloff, with everything but energy and some defensive stocks suffering steep percentage losses. The S&P 500 notched its biggest three-day percentage drop in a month.