Stocks resume slide, as Dow drops nearly 700 points in early trading

Stocks opened sharply lower on Friday after new government data pointed to a weakening U.S. labor market and as concerns mount about the impact of the Iran war on the U.S. economy. 

The S&P 500 fell 83 points, or 1.2%, to 6,747, in early trading, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 647 points, or 1.3%, and the Nasdaq Composite sank 1%.

The declines followed a steep drop on Thursday, with the Dow losing 785 points, or 1.6%, and the S&P 500 and Nasdaq falling 0.6% and 0.3%, respectively. 

Big miss

The downturn came after the release of the February employment report, which showed employers shed 92,000 jobs in February, undershooting economists’ forecasts of 60,000 payroll gains. 

“You can’t sugarcoat this report,” said Brian Jacobsen, chief economic strategist at Annex Wealth Management. “A negative payrolls number combined with a big jump in oil prices will have traders worrying about stagflation risks.”

Oil prices jump

The price of oil continued to surge on Friday amid growing concerns that the Iran war will disrupt global crude supplies. West Texas Intermediate (WTI), the U.S. oil benchmark, rose 6.8% to $86.57 per barrel on Friday morning, according to data from Factset. Brent crude, the international benchmark, jumped 4.7% to $89.44. Both were trading near their highest levels since April 2024.

Crude prices have surged this week as the Iran conflict halts shipments of oil and liquefied natural gas through the strategically vital Strait of Hormuz.