US stocks turn positive after early losses

By Ovunc Kutlu

ISTANBUL (AA) - Major indices in the US stock market turned positive before mid-day after opening the new week with losses amid the sudden collapse of two large banks.

The Dow Jones added 26 points, or 0.08%, to 31,935 at 10.40 a.m. EDT. The S&P 500 was almost flat by adding less than a point to 3,861.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq rose 18 points, or 0.17%, to 11,155.

Last week, the Dow plummeted 4.4%, the S&P lost 4.6% and the Nasdaq dove 4.7% amid the sudden collapse of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB).

While investors have been worried about the SVB's spillover effect, the New York State Department of Financial Services announced late Sunday it shut down Signature Bank to protect depositors.

The VIX volatility index, also known as the fear index, jumped 14.6% to 28.42, while the 10-year US Treasury yield plummeted 5.5% to 3.492%.

The dollar index fell 0.76% to 103.78, while the euro added 0.75% to $1.0723 against the greenback.

While investors reached out to precious metals as safe haven assets, the price of gold jumped 2.4% to $1,912 per ounce and silver soared 6.1% to $21.78.

Oil prices lost around 1%, with global benchmark Brent crude at $81.94 per barrel and US benchmark West Texas Intermediate at $75.83.