The US markets ended mostly in red on Wednesday as traders continued to keep close eye on developments in the U.S.-Iran war and oil prices. Traders took a note of a report released by the Labor Department showed the US consumer price index rose by 0.3% in February 2026, picking up from the 0.2% increase in the previous month and matching market expectations. Prices rose sharply for fuel oil (11.1 vs -5.7% in January) and gasoline (0.8% vs -3.2%), lifting aggregate energy costs by 0.6%. Energy prices are due to rise further in March as the war in Iran triggered a surge in energy commodity prices. On an annual basis, the consumer price inflation rate in the US, which excludes food and energy, stood at 2.5% in February, the lowest since March 2021, unchanged from January and matching forecasts. On the sectoral front, Computer hardware and semiconductor stocks experienced significant gains, contributing to the surge by the tech-heavy Nasdaq. 

Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 289.24 points or 0.61 percent to 47,417.27 and S&P 500 fell 5.68 points or 0.08 percent to 6,775.8, while Nasdaq increased 19.03 points or 0.08 percent to 22,716.13.