The past crises in the Middle East have left investors uncertain in a volatile stock market. Traders have been watching the oil supplies closely, as crude oil prices have increased. According to The Wall Street Journal, Libya’s de facto oil minister said that prior to the conflict, Libya’s oil output had already fallen from 1.6 million barrels to 500,000 barrels. Now, however, investors are worried that protests will spread around the Middle East, most notably to Saudi Arabia, the largest crude oil exporter.
On March 10, US stocks fell dramatically, the worst day since August. A major contribution was the brewing dispute in Saudi Arabia— The Associated Press reported that protesters had been met with gunfire from Saudi forces. Outside the Middle East, a combination of the European debt crisis and US unemployment resulted in large drops throughout the day. In a statement to The Wall Street Journal, Joseph Tanious, a market strategist at J.P. Morgan Funds, said, “It’s really been the headlines from the Middle East that continue to dominate market sentiment.” Dow Jones dropped 1.9% and closed at 11,984.61. The S&P 500 index fell to 1295.11, or 1.9%, while NASDAQ fell 1.8% to 2701.02.