Stock Market Live June 13: S&P 500 (VOO) Tumbles as War Returns to Middle East
Key Points
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Israeli warplanes launched a preemptive attack on Iranian military and nuclear targets last night.
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Investors are nervous and oil prices are spiking as war fears prevail.
Live Updates
Friday Wrap-up
The Vanguard S&P 500 ETF closed Friday at 548.77, down 1.1%.
Forget About a Rate Cut, Says JPMorgan
JPMorgan Chief U.S. Economist Michael Feroli tells investors to expect nothing new out of next week’s Federal Reserve meeting. There’s essentially no chance for an immediate cut to interest rates, and Feroli in fact expects a unanimous decision to leave rates unchanged.
Looking farther out, JPMorgan’s best guess is we’ll see only one rate cut later this year, and then perhaps two cuts in 2026.
US Consumer Sentiment Rises (or At Least It Rose)
Disturbing news out of the Middle East met some — perhaps now already stale — positive economic data this morning. For the first time since December, U.S. consumer sentiment improved in June’s preliminary report, rising 8.3 points to 60.5, a better number than had been expected.
It remains to be seen how today’s news on conflict between Israel and Iran will impact consumer sentiment going forward. On a positive note, though, stock market declines have moderated, and the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF is now down only 0.4%.
Barclays Loves Oracle
Barclays Capital rewarded Oracle (NYSE: ORCL | RH Price Prediction) for its recent earnings beat by raising its price target on the tech stock to $221 this morning. Reiterating its overweight rating on the shares, Barclays urged Oracle’s growth prospects “should no longer be ignored.”
This article will be updated throughout the day, so check back often for more daily updates.
Israeli warplanes struck multiple targets in Iran over the evening, killing senior Iranian military officers and nuclear scientists, damaging military and nuclear assets — and spooking investors around the globe. Iran has already retaliated with drone strikes on Israel as the situation spirals out of control.
And the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (NYSEMKT: VOO) is down 1% in premarket trading.
Conflict in the Middle East always raises worries about the security of oil supply, and this time is no different. Prices of both Brent and WTI crude oil spiked more than $5 per barrel this morning, up 7.9% for Brent, and 8.5% for WTI, from Thursday’s close.
Gold prices also moved higher, up 1.3% to $3,426.31 on the spot market. The US Dollar gained 0.5% against, for example, the safe haven Japanese Yen. And U.S. Treasury bond prices are rising as investors look for safe assets, pushing T-bill yields lower.
Defense stocks
Another logical response to war worries is for investors to buy defense stocks — and they are. In pre-market trading, General Dynamics (NYSE: GD) is up 2.9%, Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT) is gaining 3.1%, and RTX Corporation (NYSE: RTX) is doing best of all, up 2.6%.
Earnings
In more run-of-the-mill earnings news, S&P 500 component company Adobe Systems (Nasdaq: ADBE) reported its fiscal Q2 financial results last night. Earnings came in at $5.06 per share, and revenue was $5.9 billion, both numbers better than expected. Guidance was also good, with Adobe forecasting another earnings beat in Q3.
Furniture seller RH (NYSE: RH) also beat expectations last night, reporting a $0.13 per share Q1 profit where analysts had forecast a $0.07 per share loss. Only revenue came in a bit below expectations at $814 million.
Joel South covers large-cap stocks, dividend investing, and major market trends, with a focus on earnings analysis, valuation, and turning complex data into actionable insights for investors.
He brings more than 15 years of experience as an investor and financial journalist, including 12 years at The Motley Fool, where he served as an investment analyst, Bureau Chief, and later led the Fool.com investing news desk. He has also co-hosted an investing podcast and appeared across TV and radio discussing market trends.
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