Stock Futures Fall, Oil Jumps as Middle East War Continues; Key Jobs Report on Deck

07:31 AM EST, 03/06/2026 (MT Newswires) -- The benchmark US stock measures were down before the open Friday while oil prices continued to rise as investors monitor the ongoing conflict in the Middle East and await key employment data for February.

The S&P 500 decreased 0.3%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 0.2% and the Nasdaq was off 0.4% in premarket activity. The indexes finished Thursday's trading session in the red, with the Dow logging its steepest one-day decline since Feb. 23.

The US-Israel war with Iran entered into its seventh day on Friday, with the crucial Strait of Hormuz having been effectively shut by Tehran. Iran has reportedly struck the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Oman, Kuwait, Iraq and Saudi Arabia.

In an interview with the Financial Times published on Friday, Qatar's energy minister said a prolonged war in the Middle East could force all Gulf producers to shut down energy exports within weeks.

"Earlier, the concern was that supply simply couldn't move through the region, but these latest drone strikes significantly raise the risk to energy infrastructure across the Middle East," Aditya Saraswat, head of Middle East and North Africa research at Rystad Energy, said in a note e-mailed to MT Newswires on Thursday. "We could begin to see precautionary shutdowns across the region, which would have serious implications for global oil markets."

West Texas Intermediate crude oil increased 4.4% to $84.52 a barrel before the opening bell, while Brent gained 2.9% to $87.90.

The nonfarm payrolls report for last month is scheduled to be released at 8:30 am ET. Government data is expected to show that the US economy added 55,000 jobs in February, compared with a 130,000 gain reported for the month prior, according to a Bloomberg poll.

US job cuts declined in February following a surge at the start of the year, but downsizing plans could pick back up due to the US-Iran war, Challenger Gray & Christmas said Thursday. Employment in the private sector increased more than expected last month, ADP data showed earlier in the week.

Treasury yields were trending upwards in premarket action, with the two-year rate rising 2.6 basis points to 3.63% and the 10-year rate inclining 2.9 basis points to 4.18%.

Friday's economic calendar also has the delayed retail sales report for January at 8:30 am, while the weekly Baker Hughes oil-and-gas rig count is out at 1 pm. Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland President Beth Hammack is slated to speak at 1:30 pm.

Shares of Marvell Technology (MRVL) climbed 12% pre-bell after the chip designer reported fiscal fourth-quarter results above Wall Street's estimates. Applied Materials (AMAT) declined 2.3%, while Costco Wholesale (COST) edged down 0.3% following its latest quarterly results.

Gold moved 0.4% higher to $5,101 per troy ounce, while bitcoin slipped 1.3% to $70,297.

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