Oil prices jumped and stocks slipped on Thursday after Iran said it had targeted an American military base in retaliation for U.S. strikes in Iran the day before, marking the second exchange of hostilities in three days between the two countries.
A U.S. official said four Iranian drones it had knocked down on Wednesday posed a threat to American forces in the region and to the little commercial shipping still moving through the Strait of Hormuz, a critical transit route for oil and gas tankers.
The latest confrontation renewed doubts about the prospects of a peace deal, despite continued assurances by President Trump and administration officials that an agreement is close.
