Stocks slumped as rising oil prices heightened fears about the impact of Russia’s intensifying assault on Ukraine on the global economy. Fearful investors put money into ultra-safe US government bonds yet again.

The S&P 500 index lost 1.5%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 1.8%, while the Nasdaq Composite dropped 1.6%. The losses add to the market’s losses following a two-month slide to begin the year.

The biggest changes came from the oil, agricultural commodities, and government bond markets. Oil has been a major source of concern because Russia is the world’s second-largest crude oil exporter after Saudi Arabia. The new price hike adds to the strain on chronically rising inflation, which affects people throughout the world.

U.S. benchmark crude oil jumped 8% to $103.41 per barrel. That’s the biggest single-day jump since May 2020 and the highest price since 2014. Brent crude, the international standard, surged 7.1% to $104.97.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has also put more pressure on agricultural commodity prices, which were already getting pushed higher with rising inflation. Wheat and corn prices rose more than 5% per bushel and are already up more than 20% so far this year. Ukraine is a key exporter of both crops.

Investors continued putting money into bonds, pushing yields lower. The yield on the 10-year Treasury fell sharply, sliding to 1.73% from 1.83% late Monday. It is now back to where it was in January. In February, the 10-year yield, which is used to set interest rates on mortgages and many other kinds of loans, had crossed back above 2% for the first time in over two years.

The sharp pullback in bond yields weighed on banks. JPMorgan Chase fell 3.8% and Bank of America slid 3.9%. More than 70% of the stocks in the S&P 500 closed lower, with technology, industrials and communication companies among the biggest drags on the benchmark index. Only the energy sector notched a gain. Occidental Petroleum jumped 7%.

The S&P 500 fell 67.68 points to 4,306.26. The Dow, which had been down 763 points, ended down 597.65 points to 33,294.95. The Nasdaq slid 218.94 points to 13,532.46. Small-company stocks fared worse than the broader market. The Russell 2000 index slid 39.58 points, or 1.9%, to 2,008.51.

The value of the Russian ruble plunged to a record low Monday after Western countries moved to block some Russian banks from a key global payments system. The Russian central bank raised its key rate to 20% from 9.5% in a desperate attempt to shore up the plummeting currency and prevent a run on banks. Russia’s stock market remained closed on Tuesday.

Several stocks made big moves on earnings. Target jumped 9.8% for the biggest gain in the S&P 500 after reporting strong fourth-quarter financial results and saying it will invest up to $5 billion this year in physical stores, remodels and other initiatives. Workday rose 4.9% after reporting encouraging earnings.