US stock benchmarks have dropped to new lows since the conflict began, with the Nasdaq and S&P 500 under the most severe pressure (while the Dow Jones is not there yet).

Across the board, major indices are down 1% and more for the session, with the pump-fake from Monday now turning against itself: Any hopes for a quick peace deal have proven short-lived, and the market's previous easing in sentiment was merely a timid pause.

Bulls who bought that dip are now paying the consequences.

The cause: A classic, violent rebound in Energy markets: Oil continues to surge, with Brent crude pushing back above the critical $110 per barrel mark. This spike in energy costs is logically reawakening inflation fears and dragging down risk assets – But this time, Gold is actually faring better.

The particular turn comes from the fact that traders are actively pricing in the risk of a severe escalation over the weekend: The impending arrival of a 4,500-strong Marine fleet in the Middle East is adding to the immense geopolitical anxiety.

Investors are tracking headlines by the minute, waiting to see if an anticipated Iranian counter-proposal to a security deal actually materializes.

As traditional markets close, all eyes will turn to Bitcoin over the weekend. Because it trades 24/7, it will act as the primary real-time barometer for global sentiment.

Let's spot where today's rough price action is heading by looking at today's intraday charts and trading levels for the major US indexes: the Dow Jones, Nasdaq, and S&P 500.

Today's selloff is surprisingly pulled by the largest Cap Stocks and isn't so widespread, with Energy Stocks naturally appreciating form the bounce in commodities, but Utilities and Industrials are somehow rising despite the broad pessimistic mood – A turn to defensives?

Among the laggards, some large-cap Finance Stocks are getting hammered, including JP Morgan, Visa and Mastercard, while virtually all the Mag 7s are also dropping, and Amazon being the worst performer of them all.