Stock Market Update

[BRIEFING.COM] The S&P 500 (-0.7%), Nasdaq Composite (-1.1%), and DJIA (-0.2%) have given up much of yesterday's advance as geopolitical developments continue to drive some choppiness in equities. 

Reports suggest that Iran has officially rejected the U.S. peace proposal, and Iranian strikes against energy infrastructure targets in the region have neighboring Gulf states preparing for military action. It is worth noting that today's developments are not really groundbreaking to the market, as Iran has denied taking part in negotiations for some time. However, increased murkiness around a potential end to the conflict has oil prices rising today, which in turn weighs on stocks. 

Crude oil is currently up $3.65 (+4.0%) to $93.97 per barrel, and like many recent sessions since the conflict in Iran broke out, the energy sector (+1.0%) leads the sector standings. Four other S&P 500 sectors trade higher, but the gains are modest in nature. 

Meanwhile, mega-cap and tech stocks are underperforming today. The communication services sector (-2.1%) holds the widest loss as Meta Platforms (META 560.96, -33.93, -5.70%) and Alphabet (GOOG 284.52, -5.07, -1.75%) move lower after a jury found them liable in a social media addiction trial. 

The information technology sector (-1.4%) is also a laggard, with particular weakness in its semiconductor components. 

The Vanguard Mega Cap Growth ETF is down 1.2%, contributing to the underperformance of the market-weighted S&P 500 (-0.7%) relative to the S&P 500 Equal Weighted Index (flat).

Outside of the S&P 500, the Russell 2000 (-0.7%) and S&P Mid Cap 400 (-0.4%) hold losses comparable to those across the major averages.