(Updates with index/price moves and company/geopolitical news from the first paragraph.)
US equity indexes dropped as government bond yields jumped to the highest in a year and crude oil surged after President Donald Trump warned of a major operation in Iran.
The Nasdaq Composite slumped 2.2% to 25,137.69, the S&P 500 dropped 1.2% to 7,408.30, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 1% to 51,711.65 on Thursday. Consumer discretionary and communication services were the standout decliners, down more than 5% each, while technology also lagged. Industrials and health care topped the gainers.
President Donald Trump is considering restarting major combat operations in Iran, including strikes bigger than the ones seen in Operation Epic Fury, according to an Axios report. "I am considering a massive attack. Bigger than ever before. I am close to making a decision. We are all set for it," the president said.
Yemen's Houthi rebels said they attacked two Saudi Arabian oil tankers in the Red Sea on Thursday to disrupt Middle East exports, according to a report from the Associated Press. If Houthis attack again, "the U.S. will hold Iran responsible, in that the Houthis are a Surrogate and/or Proxy of Iran, and major military punishment will be inflicted upon Iran and, of course, the Houthis themselves," Trump said in a Truth Social post.
The CBOE Volatility Index VIX, also known as the fear gauge for equities, shot up 12% to 18.70.
The front-month US West Texas Intermediate soared 6.1% to $92.13 a barrel, and global benchmark North Sea Brent spiked 6.5% to $100.19 a barrel.
In precious metal markets, gold futures dropped 2.4% to $4,052.20, and silver futures slumped 4% to $57.91, reflecting concerns that an extended disruption to crude oil supplies may make it more challenging for the Federal Reserve to bring inflation down to its 2% target.
US Treasury yields jumped, extending gains. The 10-year marched 3.8 basis points higher to 4.70% after touching its highest intraday level in a year. The two-year surged 4.7 basis points to 4.35% after yields hit a fresh 52-week high this week.
In economic news, initial jobless claims fell 22,000 to 187,000 in the week ended July 18, the lowest since 1969 and trimming the four-week moving average by 7,250 to 207,500, a fourth straight decrease.
In company news, Tesla (TSLA) shares fell 14.5%, the worst performer in the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq, after the firm reported a steeper-than-expected drop in Q2 adjusted earnings.
The European Commission fined Alphabet's (GOOG, GOOGL) Google 890 million euros ($1.04 billion) for violating the Digital Markets Act by self-preferencing in Google Search and anti-steering practices on Google Play. Shares slumped 7.1%, among the steepest decliners on the S&P 500, the Nasdaq, and the Dow.
After the bell, Intel (INTC) reported fiscal Q2 adjusted earnings of $0.42 per share, swinging from a loss of $0.10 a year earlier. Analysts polled by FactSet expected earnings of $0.22. Revenue for the three months ended June 27 jumped to $16.13 billion from $12.86 billion a year earlier. Analysts expected $14.44 billion.