By Caitlin McCabe
Oil prices topped $100 a barrel again and stocks slid Thursday as efforts to end the war in Iran showed few signs of meaningful progress.
Arab mediators are pushing for a meeting between the U.S. and Iran as soon as this week, and President Trump has told associates in recent days that he wants to avoid a protracted war. Yet Iran has signaled it has no intention of negotiating, even as it privately appears willing to entertain diplomatic outreach.
One of the key issues in the talks is that both sides are pushing maximalist demands that go well beyond what was on the table before the war, sparking fresh anxiety among investors that the conflict could drag on.
Brent crude-oil futures pushed past $101 a barrel after slipping as low as $93.45 Wednesday on optimism about a possible cease-fire that is now tempering.
U.S. stocks retreated, mirroring a selloff in Asian and European indexes, with the Nasdaq composite leading losses with a 1.1% decline.
The OECD on Thursday sounded a note of caution on the outlook of the global economy, warning of a large setback to growth and a jump in inflation if an energy crisis worsens and drags on as a result of the conflict.
Jobless claims data signaled that while the U.S. labor market has been cooler, employers are holding off on widespread layoffs.
Global government bond yields resumed their climb, with investors continuing to fret that interest rates will stay high. The dollar strengthened and gold declined.
Later in the session, traders will monitor comments from a slate of Federal Reserve speakers for any clues about the central bank's thinking on the threat of war-induced pricing pressures.
Write to Caitlin McCabe at caitlin.mccabe@wsj.com
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(END) Dow Jones Newswires
March 26, 2026 09:38 ET (13:38 GMT)
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