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• The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust was down 1.7% in pre-market, while the Invesco QQQ Trust Series 1 slumped over 2%, at the time of writing.
• The U.S. Dollar Index rose to its highest level since January 19.
• The strengthening of the dollar has offset the rush to gold, with spot prices down 2%

With the war in the Middle East intensifying on Tuesday and investors moving into risk-off mode, futures on benchmark U.S. indices declined sharply in the morning.

The SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF (DIA) traded nearly 2% lower in pre-market trading on Tuesday and is set to fall below its 100-day moving average for the first time since June 23, 2025.

Source: TradingView

U.S. markets are sliding sharply, following steep declines in Asian and European bourses, as the U.S.–Israel–Iran conflict enters its fourth day, driving up crude oil prices and stoking inflation fears.

The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY) was down 1.7% in pre-market, while the Invesco QQQ Trust Series 1 (QQQ) slumped 2.2%. 

Despite falling 03% so far this year, DIA has outperformed SPY and QQQ, which have declined 1.5% and 4%, respectively.

The U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures for April deliveries were up 7.8% at $76.78 per barrel, while Brent Crude contracts expiring in April 2026 jumped 2.5% to $72.5 per barrel.

Bond, Dollar Outperform Gold

The benchmark 10-year Treasury yield rose 1.2%, while the U.S. Dollar Index (DXY), which measures the U.S. dollar against six major currencies, extended Monday’s gains to climb 0.7% to 99.3, its highest level since January 19.

The strengthening of the dollar has offset the rush to gold, historically a safe-haven asset, especially during geopolitical turmoil. Spot gold (XAU/USD) was down 2% to $5,213.8 per ounce at the time of writing, while contracts expiring in April 2026 edged 0.9% lower to $5,263.20 an ounce.

“The price decline is likely due to the market ​now placing greater weight on the inflationary risks resulting from the war in the Middle East ​and therefore raising its interest rate expectations. This also explains why the U.S. dollar continues to gain ground,” Thu Lan Nguyen of Commerzbank told Reuters on Tuesday.

Spot silver (XAG/USD) crashed more than 11% to fall below $80 for the first time since February 20.

How Did Stocktwits Users React?

According to Stocktwits data, retail message volumes for DIA on the platform jumped nearly 8% in the past 24 hours, and more than 77% over a seven-day period. Sentiment remained in the ‘extremely bearish’ territory.

Index heavyweights, Goldman Sachs (GS) and Caterpillar (CAT), were down more than 2.5% each, while Microsoft (MSFT) slid 1.8% lower.

One user noted that oil surging is bad for risk-on assets like tech due to their elevated valuations.

Another user tracking SPY expects the index to drop to $652. It is currently at 674.5.

For updates and corrections, email newsroom[at]stocktwits[dot]com.<