Wall Street Steady as Sanctions Boost Oil Prices/ Newslooks/ WASHINGTON/ J. Mansour/ Morning Edition/ Wall Street traded mostly flat Thursday as energy sector gains offset losses from Tesla and IBM. Oil prices surged nearly 5% after new U.S. sanctions on Russian oil companies. Despite earnings disappointments, the broader market edged slightly higher amid investor caution.
Wall Street Oil Gains Tesla Losses Quick Looks
- Market Status: Stocks drifted; S&P 500 rose 0.1%
- Tesla Impact: Shares dropped 5.1% on profit miss
- IBM Decline: Stock down 5.5% despite strong revenue
- Oil Surge: Crude prices jump after Russia sanctions
- Energy Stocks: Exxon, Chevron gain as oil rebounds
- Big Winners: Dow Inc. and Las Vegas Sands post strong earnings
- Healthcare Drop: Molina Healthcare plunges 21.8% on earnings miss
- Gold Prices: Recover 2.4% after steep decline
- Global Markets: Mixed results from Asia and Europe
- Bond Yields: 10-year Treasury yield ticks up to 3.98%
Deep Look
Wall Street Edges Higher as Oil Gains Balance Tesla, IBM Losses
NEW YORK — Wall Street remained largely unchanged Thursday morning as investors processed mixed earnings results and rising geopolitical tensions. Gains in energy stocks, fueled by a sharp spike in oil prices, helped offset notable losses from Tesla and IBM.
The S&P 500 inched up by 0.1%, continuing its cautious climb toward the all-time high it hit earlier this month. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose by 19 points — less than 0.1% — while the Nasdaq Composite was flat at the opening bell.
Tesla, IBM Earnings Disappoint
Tesla’s stock dropped 5.1% after the electric vehicle maker reported quarterly profits that fell short of Wall Street expectations, even though its revenue slightly exceeded forecasts. Investors seemed unimpressed by the growth, focusing instead on thinning profit margins and delivery targets.
IBM also tumbled 5.5%, despite reporting stronger-than-expected earnings and revenue. The drag came from weaker performance in its Red Hat division, a key component of IBM’s growth strategy in cloud-based and open-source software.
These corporate disappointments put pressure on tech-heavy indexes and underscored investor concerns about overstretched valuations in the sector.
Oil Prices Soar on Russia Sanctions
The biggest mover of the day was the oil market. Prices jumped nearly 5% after President Donald Trump announced sweeping sanctions on Russian oil giants Rosneft and Lukoil in response to the country’s continued military aggression in Ukraine.
The sanctions are expected to disrupt the global oil supply chain and tighten inventories. Benchmark U.S. crude climbed 4.9% to $61.35 per barrel, while Brent crude — the international standard — rose 4.8% to $65.63.
Despite the rally, oil remains down more than 10% for the year, as global demand forecasts have weakened and inventories have remained strong.
Energy Sector Leads Market Gains
Energy companies quickly benefited from the jump in oil prices. Exxon Mobil gained 1%, and Chevron rose 0.7%. The broader energy sector provided a cushion to the overall market, helping keep major indexes stable.
Outside the energy space, Dow Inc. surged 10.7% after posting quarterly results that outpaced analyst expectations. Las Vegas Sands followed with a 9.1% gain, riding strong earnings from international markets and increased travel activity.
Healthcare Lags Behind
Meanwhile, Molina Healthcare plunged 21.8%, after reporting earnings that missed expectations by a wide margin. CEO Joseph Zubretsky pointed to a “challenging environment” for managing medical costs — a theme echoed across the insurance industry throughout the year.
Investors have grown increasingly wary of rising healthcare expenditures, which have cut into insurer profits industry-wide.
Gold Prices Rebound
After a sharp two-day selloff, gold prices rebounded. The price of gold rose 2.4% to $4,160 per ounce, regaining some lost ground. Earlier in the week, gold had touched a record high before faltering under profit-taking pressure.
Even with recent volatility, gold is still up an eye-popping 57.5% in 2025, driven by demand for safe-haven assets amid geopolitical uncertainty and fluctuating interest rates.
Global Markets Offer Mixed Signals
Asian and European markets showed mixed results. In Asia:
- Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index rose 0.7%
- Shanghai Composite climbed 0.2%
- Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 1.4%
- South Korea’s Kospi declined 1%
These moves came after the Chinese Communist Party concluded a major policy meeting, pledging to accelerate domestic self-reliance in science and technology.
In Europe, trading remained cautious amid ongoing concerns about energy prices and regional economic growth.
Bond Market Update
In the bond market, the yield on the 10-year U.S. Treasury rose slightly to 3.98%, up from 3.97% on Wednesday. Yields are closely watched by investors for signals about inflation expectations and Federal Reserve policy decisions.
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