Stock Market 2 March 2026

The S&P 500 barely moved on Monday, held in check as Nvidia and Microsoft’s strength balanced out steep drops for airlines and cruise stocks—those names tumbled after surging crude jumped over 8% on Middle East escalation. By 11:42 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was off 96.59 points, or 0.20%. The S&P 500 edged lower, losing 0.05%, while the Nasdaq Composite added 0.22%. Wall Street’s VIX volatility index hit 21.31. “At times when there is nervousness, people will go to the leaders in the market,” said Joe Saluzzi, co-head of equity trading at Themis Trading.