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The stock market battled back to finish in the black on Thursday (February 24) as Russian troops began a full-scale invasion of Ukraine. During a wild trading day, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down by more than 800 points before rebounding and closing ahead by 92 points. The Nasdaq and S&P 500 climbed back into the black after starting the day in the red.
The Nasdaq began the day bear market territory, down over 20% from its record high in November, but managed to pull out of it, finishing the day ahead by 436 points.
While the S&P 500 remains in correction territory, it finished the day up 1.5%, closing with a gain of 63 points.
Defense stocks helped drive the rally, with Lockheed Martin and Raytheon trading higher.
"Further escalation in the ongoing geopolitical conflict would likely have a positive impact on the prices of defense sector stocks, such as Lockheed Martin (LMT) and Raytheon (RTX), which supply the U.S. military and its NATO allies with fighter jets and advanced missile systems," said Jesse Cohen, senior analyst at Investing.com, in a report, according to CNN.
In Europe, the invasion sent stock markets lower, while in Asia, the Nikkei 225 dropped by 1.8%, and China's Shanghai Composite Index was 1.7% lower.
The Moscow Exchange has suspended trading across all markets following the invasion.
The price of oil also skyrocketed above $100 a barrel.