Stocks swung between small gains and losses in morning trade on Wall Street Monday in a slow start to the week. The S&P 500 slipped 0.1% as of 10:23 am Eastern Time zone. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 123 points, or 0.4%, to 34,741 and the Nasdaq slipped 0.1%.

Retailers and other companies that depend on direct consumer spending gained ground. Tesla jumped 5.4% after it announced that it is considering another stock split. Amazon surged 0.7%.

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Energy stocks saw some of the biggest drops as crude oil prices fell sharply, Exxon Mobil fell 2.8%. US crude oil fell 7.2%. Brent crude, the international oil benchmark, slumped 6.6%. This comes after the news that China started its most extensive coronavirus lockdown in two years to conduct mass testing and control a growing outbreak in Shanghai. That could put a halt to global demand for energy.

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Oil prices remain volatile following the war in Ukraine. UAE’s energy minister reiterated Monday his desire for an oil alliance with Russia, saying that nation’s 10 million barrels of oil a day make it an important part of the global OPEC+ energy alliance.

Ukraine and Russia are due to hold talks early this week in Turkey.

Oil prices are higher than 40% globally due to tighter supplies and a strong demand environment. Higher oil prices also raise concerns that persistently high inflation could worsen, further threatening global economic growth.

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European markets were mostly higher, while markets in Asian markets were mixed.

Russian stocks plunged as its stock market resumed trading after a month-long pause due to the invasion of Ukraine. The previous full trading session in Moscow was on February 25, a day after the index slumped by a third after President Vladimir Putin ordered the invasion.

Bond yields eased back after surging higher this month. The yield on the 10-year Treasury dropped to 2.44% from 2.49% late Friday. Bond yields have been increasing as Wall Street prepares for higher interest rates.

The Federal Reserve has already raised its key benchmark interest rate by 0.25% and is ready to continue hiking rates to help control the impacts of rising inflation.