US markets end mostly in red on Wednesday

12 Mar 2026 Evaluate

The US markets ended mostly in red on Wednesday as traders continued to keep close eye on developments in the U.S.-Iran war and oil prices. Traders took a note of a report released by the Labor Department showed the US consumer price index rose by 0.3% in February 2026, picking up from the 0.2% increase in the previous month and matching market expectations. Prices rose sharply for fuel oil (11.1 vs -5.7% in January) and gasoline (0.8% vs -3.2%), lifting aggregate energy costs by 0.6%. Energy prices are due to rise further in March as the war in Iran triggered a surge in energy commodity prices. On an annual basis, the consumer price inflation rate in the US, which excludes food and energy, stood at 2.5% in February, the lowest since March 2021, unchanged from January and matching forecasts. On the sectoral front, Computer hardware and semiconductor stocks experienced significant gains, contributing to the surge by the tech-heavy Nasdaq. 

Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 289.24 points or 0.61 percent to 47,417.27 and S&P 500 fell 5.68 points or 0.08 percent to 6,775.8, while Nasdaq increased 19.03 points or 0.08 percent to 22,716.13.


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