04:45 PM EDT, 03/30/2026 (MT Newswires) -- The Nasdaq Composite and the S&P 500 fell for a third straight session on Monday and oil prices advanced as the Middle East conflict entered its fifth week.

The Nasdaq closed 0.7% lower at 20,794.6, while the S&P 500 fell 0.4% to 6,343.7. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.1% to 45,216.1. Most sectors ended in the green, led by financials, while industrials saw the steepest decline.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil was most recently up 4.9% at $104.52 per barrel. Brent crude for May delivery, which reached as high as $116.89 per barrel earlier on Monday, pared gains and was last up 1.4% at $114.19.

The US is in discussions with a new Iranian regime, but would blow up Iran's power plants, oil wells and export hub Kharg Island if a deal is not reached and the Strait of Hormuz remains shut, President Donald Trump said in a social media post Monday.

"While peace negotiations are perhaps underway, the Strait of Hormuz remains largely closed and investors worry that higher-for-longer fuel prices and supply chain disruptions for other commodities will begin to restrict global economic growth," James Ragan, director of investment management and research at D.A. Davidson, said in report e-mailed to MT Newswires.

The Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen launched missile attacks on Israel over the weekend, while Israel's military said it had launched air strikes on central and western Iran, Reuters reported.

"Oil prices jumped at the start of the week as the Middle East conflict intensified and Iran-backed Houthi militants entered the war," ING Bank said in a report. "There remains little sign of imminent peace talks."

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said inflation expectations in the US seem to be "well anchored" beyond the short term amid the recent oil price shock, potentially allaying market concerns regarding possible monetary policy tightening.

"But nonetheless, it's something we will eventually maybe face the question of what to do here," Powell said during a discussion at Harvard University. "We're not really facing it yet, because we don't know what the economic effects (of the Iran war) will be, but we'll certainly be mindful of that broader context when we make that decision."

US Treasury yields were lower, with the 10-year yield last down 8.4 basis points at 4.35% and the two-year yield decreasing 8.2 basis points to 3.84%.

In company news, Sysco ( SYY ) agreed to acquire Jetro Restaurant Depot in a cash-and-stock deal with an enterprise value of about $29.1 billion, as the food distributor looks to expand into the cash-and-carry wholesale channel. Sysco ( SYY ) shares tumbled 15%, the worst performer on the S&P 500.

Alaska Air ( ALK ) expects to report a bigger first-quarter loss than previously estimated amid higher fuel costs and travel demand disruptions in Mexico and Hawaii. The airline's shares declined 5.5%.

CrowdStrike ( CRWD ) shares rose 2.8% as Wolfe Research upgraded the cybersecurity company's stock to outperform from peer perform.

Some tech names fell, with Micron Technology ( MU ) down 9.9%, the second steepest decline on the S&P 500. Cisco Systems ( CSCO ) and Nvidia ( NVDA ) dropped 3.6% and 1.4%, respectively, the second- and third-worst performers on the Dow.

"Concerns ranging from how long it will take the massive investments going into (artificial intelligence) by technology's hyper-scalers and 'lesser scalers' to turn profitable -- along with questions on the quality of lending in the consumer credit space -- remain in place while projected risks are pondered and sorted," Oppenheimer Asset Management Chief Investment Strategist John Stoltzfus said in a report e-mailed to MT Newswires.

"We expect that issues currently worrying the market in tech and private credit will ultimately prove to be idiosyncratic rather than systemic in nature," Stoltzfus said.

Gold was last up 0.3% at $4,535.40 per troy ounce, while silver rose 0.4% to $70.06 per ounce.