December S&P 500 E-Mini futures (ESZ26) are down -0.62%, and December Nasdaq 100 E-Mini futures (NQZ26) are down -0.84% this morning as a fresh jump in oil prices pushed bond yields sharply higher, sapping investors’ risk appetite.
The price of WTI crude jumped nearly +5% on Thursday after The Atlantic reported that the White House asked the Pentagon to prepare options for strikes against Iran that could be carried out before next month’s midterm elections. Houthi militants’ escalating attacks on Saudi Arabia, another tanker strike in the Persian Gulf, and rising U.S. offshore production shutdowns ahead of Hurricane Isaias added to unease in the oil market.