Markets Rebound Despite Escalating U.S.–Iran Conflict; Nasdaq Leads Gains
The Canadian Vanguard Stock Market Report – Monday March 2, 2026 Edition.
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The Toronto Market
The Toronto Market Index
The S&P/TSX Composite Index rebounded on Monday, fully recovering Friday’s losses and posting additional gains. The index rose 201.28 points, or 0.59%, to close at 34,541.27.
The Toronto market appeared to brush aside concerns over the ongoing conflict in the Middle East and delivered a solid performance. After opening lower, the index began climbing shortly after the opening bell. It consolidated around midday before resuming its upward momentum in the afternoon. The index closed firmly in an uptrend.
Notably, today’s advance was accompanied by a healthy increase in trading volume compared to Friday, suggesting stronger investor participation.
Today’s TSX Market Statistics
On the TSX, declining issues slightly outnumbered advancing issues. There were 1,149 decliners compared with 1,088 advancers, resulting in a decliner-to-advancer ratio of 1.05 to 1 — roughly one declining stock for every advancing stock. Additionally, 116 issues closed unchanged.
The exchange recorded 308 new 52-week highs and 33 new 52-week lows, compared with 303 new highs and 29 new lows on Friday.
Total trading volume reached 600,955,845 shares, representing a 24% decrease from Friday’s 785,713,303 shares. Despite the strong gain in the index today, overall trading activity declined from Friday’s elevated level. However, Friday’s volume was significantly above the recent daily average. In fact, today’s volume was approximately 12% higher than the recent daily average, indicating solid underlying participation.
Today’s Toronto Market Wrap-Up Report
The Toronto market was notably steadier today compared with Friday’s volatile and choppy session. Telecommunications Services and Energy led the advance, followed by Industrials, Consumer Discretionary (Durable Consumer Goods & Services), and Financials. Technology, Healthcare, and Utilities were the lagging sectors.
The market opened cautiously amid expectations that investors might rush into gold and silver mining stocks due to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. However, trading conditions remained relatively orderly, and concerns about the war appeared largely sidelined. How long this sentiment will persist if the conflict continues remains uncertain. At this early stage, a measured and cautious approach may be prudent.
The list of the fifteen top-performing stocks was dominated by energy and fuel-related mining companies. Energy Fuels Inc. (TSX: EFR) led the group, rising 9.61%. Cameco Corporation, a major player in the nuclear energy industry, gained 6.5% on volume of 1.1 million shares. Encouragingly, the list was broadly diversified across multiple industries. Thomson Reuters Corporation (TSX: TRI) advanced 3.59%, while Rogers Communications (TSX: RCI.B) climbed 2.96%.
The three most actively traded stocks on the Toronto market were:
- Suncor Energy Inc. (TSX: SU): up 2.60%, closing at $79.05, with 20.9 million shares traded.
- Canadian Natural Resources Limited (TSX: CNQ): up 1.53%, closing at $60.58, with 17.38 million shares traded.
- Cenovus Energy Inc. (TSX: CVE): up 2.83%, closing at $31.25, with 14.1 million shares traded.
Overall, the market delivered a solid performance, supported by strength in energy-related names and steady participation across multiple sectors.
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The US Markets
The U.S. Market Indexes
U.S. markets delivered another mixed session today, following a similar pattern to Friday.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 73.14 points, or 0.15%, to close at 48,904.78. In contrast, the S&P 500 edged up 2.74 points, or 0.04%, finishing at 6,881.62. The Nasdaq Composite gained 80.65 points, or 0.36%, to end the session at 22,748.86.
The Nasdaq reversed the negative trend of the previous two sessions, not only closing in positive territory but also emerging as the strongest performer among the major large- and mid-cap indexes. The index appeared to look past immediate economic concerns related to the escalating conflict in the Middle East, which began over the weekend.
Meanwhile, the Russell 2000 Index advanced 23.58 points, or 0.90%, to close at 2,655.94, making it the top-performing major index of the day. The small-cap benchmark is now trading above its 50-day moving average, a technically positive signal.
Blue-chip stocks lagged overall, contributing to the Dow’s modest decline. All major indexes opened weak and in negative territory but steadily climbed throughout the session, albeit with some volatility—particularly among large-cap stocks.
Today’s U.S. Market Statistics
New York Stock Exchange (NYSE): Advancing issues outnumbered declining issues on the NYSE. There were 1,563 advancers, 1,202 decliners, and 69 unchanged issues, resulting in an advancer-to-decliner ratio of 1.30 to 1 — approximately six advancing stocks for every five declining stocks.
The exchange recorded 226 new 52-week highs and 76 new 52-week lows, compared with 201 new highs and 66 new lows on Friday.
Total NYSE trading volume reached 6,170,640,500 shares, about 3% higher than the 5,984,201,216 shares traded on Friday.
NASDAQ: On the NASDAQ, advancing stocks also edged out declining stocks. There were 2,475 advancers and 2,339 decliners, producing an advancer-to-decliner ratio of 1.06 to 1, with 321 issues unchanged — roughly one advancing stock for every declining stock.
The exchange posted 169 new 52-week highs and 224 new 52-week lows, compared with 214 new highs and 159 new lows on Friday.
Total NASDAQ trading volume amounted to 8,517,043,019 shares, representing a 14% decline from Friday’s 9,906,884,526 shares traded.
Today’s U.S. Market Wrap-Up Report
Energy (+2.1%) and Technology (+0.41%) led the market on Monday, while retail-related stocks lagged. Only four of the eleven major sectors finished in positive territory, with Healthcare and Financials posting declines.
Geopolitics moved back to the forefront of investor concerns following the weekend escalation involving the U.S., Israel, and Iran. The broader market experienced heightened volatility as tensions contributed to uneven trading conditions. Despite this, the Nasdaq Composite, which had declined over the previous two sessions, rebounded strongly and closed up nearly 1%.
Oil prices moved higher amid concerns about potential disruptions to supply and infrastructure damage. Risks to major oil flows are likely to remain a key focus in the early stages of the conflict. It is also possible that some investors had anticipated escalating tensions, given the significant buildup of military assets in the region in recent weeks.
Company Highlights
In corporate news, NVIDIA Corporation (NVDA) announced plans to invest $2 billion each in Coherent Corp. (COHR) and Lumentum Holdings Inc. (LITE). Nvidia shares climbed 3%, making it one of the top gainers among large-cap stocks. Coherent surged 15%, while Lumentum advanced nearly 12%.
Optical transmission and manufacturing-related companies showed notable strength and extended their gains. Meanwhile, AST SpaceMobile (ASTS) rose despite reporting a larger-than-expected loss, reflecting continued investor interest in the satellite communications segment.
Commodities and Bonds
Oil Prices: U.S. crude oil futures rose 6.6% earlier in the session to $71.47 per barrel.
Gold: U.S. gold futures increased by $2.13, or 0.29%, to $5,327.70 per troy ounce.
Silver: Silver declined $2.65, or 3.00%, to $86.14 per ounce as of 12:30 a.m. EST (Tuesday).
Bitcoin: Bitcoin (BTC-USD) was trading down $1,005.51, or 1.45%, at $68,211.00 at the time of this update (12:30 a.m. EST, Tuesday).
10-Year Treasury Yield: The U.S. 10-year Treasury yield rose nine basis points to 4.071% as of 12:30 a.m. EST (Tuesday).
After-Hours Action
Futures moved sharply lower Monday evening:
- Dow Jones Industrial Average futures fell 516 points, or 1.05%, versus fair value.
- S&P 500 futures declined 73.75 points, or 1.04%, to 6,814.00.
- Nasdaq-100 futures dropped 343.50 points, or 1.36%, to 24,683.00.
(All figures reflect market conditions as of 12:30 a.m. EST, Tuesday.)
Reminder: Overnight futures activity often has limited correlation with the next regular trading session. All figures reflect market conditions at the time of capture only.
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(c) This article is published by The Canadian Vanguard on March 3, 2026
