The commander of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said the Strait of Hormuz is closed and "any ship that tries to pass will be set on fire," Reuters <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/iran-live-israel-strikes-hezbollah-uk-base-hit-cyprus-conflict-widens-2026-03-02/">reported </a>, citing Iranian media.

Iran has closed the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial oil corridor

The start of hostilities in Iran last weekend changes short-term benchmarks for investors: in the current environment, a tactical reduction in the share of stocks in portfolios is justified, keeping the focus on the energy sector, while technology securities may face additional pressure, according to Marko Papich, a strategist at independent research company BCA Research. His note is <a href="https://www.marketwatch.com/story/conflict-in-the-middle-east-wont-stop-markets-rotation-away-from-u-s-tech-stocks-but-accelerate-it-says-bca-strategist-bd0bedd8?mod=newsviewer_click_seemore">quoted by</a> MarketWatch.

Conflict in the Middle East will accelerate sell-off in US IT stocks - BCA

He allowed that the hostilities could last longer than 4-5 weeks

"Timing is not important." Trump named four goals of military operation in Iran

Startup Anthropic has experienced glitches with its artificial intelligence app Claude. This happened shortly after the app topped the Apple App Store charts. The company reported record volumes of user registrations. It was Anthropic's AI tools that caused investors to worry about the future of the business model of companies in a number of industries, causing a "software apocalypse" - a stock sell-off.

Anthropic has announced a glitch in its AI. This startup has launched a "software apocalypse"

Analysts expect the S&amp;P 500 to grow by 13% by the end of the year - only a sharp and sustained rise in the price of oil can change this forecast

Morgan Stanley refused to change its bullish outlook on US stocks because of the Iran war

NVIDIA Corporation

Microsoft Corporation

The Nasdaq Composite index of the US technology sector has recovered the fall it showed after the opening of trading and even gained almost 0.2%. However, the index is unstable and from time to time goes into negative territory again. At the beginning of trading on March 2, the index fell by 1.6% on the background of the conflict between the U.S. and Iran, which began on February 28.

The Nasdaq index recovered its losses and turned to growth. Investors buy on the downturn

Rolls-Royce Holdings plc

Citigroup has revised its global strategy, choosing the UK's FTSE 100 index as its main "geopolitical hedge"

Citigroup has upgraded its rating on UK stocks. Why did they become a "safe haven"? 

The U.S.-flagged tanker Stena Imperative was damaged in a Bahraini port on Monday night, Reuters <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/us-flagged-products-tanker-hit-by-unknown-projectiles-bahrain-port-sources-say-2026-03-02/">reported</a>, citing two sources.

U.S.-flagged tanker damaged in Bahrain port - Reuters

Data

Gilat Satellite Networks Ltd.

Shares of Israeli satellite communications company Gilat, which are traded on the Nasdaq, could rise almost 20% over the next two months, according to an investment idea put out by Freedom Broker (and seen by Oninvest). The selloff following the company’s latest earnings has created an attractive entry point, while rising tensions in the Middle East are boosting demand for the company’s products, the analysts said.

Freedom sees attractive entry point in satellite maker Gilat amid geopolitical morass

Centerra Gold Inc.

NovaGold Resources Inc.

Gold Royalty Corp.

Contango Ore, Inc.

Caledonia Mining Corporation Plc

Dakota Gold Corp.

Galiano Gold Inc.

DRDGOLD Limited

Insider Monkey has <a href="https://www.insidermonkey.com/blog/12-best-gold-stocks-to-buy-according-to-analysts-1706769/5/">identified</a>&nbsp;12 gold mining companies that Wall Street analysts consider attractive "buys." Eight of them are small- or mid-cap firms.

Insider Monkey picks best smid-cap gold stocks amid continuing rally in yellow metal

Krispy Kreme, Inc.

Shares of doughnut maker Krispy Kreme <a href="https://www.marketwatch.com/investing/stock/dnut/analystestimates?mod=mw_quote_tab">surged</a>&nbsp;27.8% after the company released its fourth-quarter and full-year financial results. The company said it expects further deleveraging and progress in executing its turnaround plan following the <a href="https://en.oninvest.com/article/krispy-kreme-and-mcdonald-s-will-end-their-doughnut-partnership-analysts-were-betting-on-it">end of its partnership with McDonald’s</a>.

Krispy Kreme shares shoot up almost 30% on 4Q/FY earnings

Bajaj Consumer Care Limited

MTAR Technologies Limited

MRV Engenharia e Participacoes S.A.

Last year showed that small caps in emerging markets can compete with large issuers, despite a <a href="https://en.oninvest.com/article/undervalued-small-caps-where-to-make-money-in-emerging-markets">lag</a>&nbsp;that persisted through the third quarter. For 2025, the return of the Equal Weight EM Small Cap Index, put together by analyst Aldiyar Anuarbekov for Oninvest, amounted to 18.25% in dollar terms*. For comparison: the broad-market S&amp;P 500 index grew 16.65%, while the smid-cap Russell 2000 rose 11.21% last year. The 8.06% increase in the Cap Weight EM Small Cap Index, meanwhile, indicates that the gains were more evenly distributed rather than concentrated in a small number of large stocks.

Where to find outstripping returns in EM small caps in 2026

Dutch Bros Inc.

Dutch Bros, a small U.S. coffee chain, is a growth stock that "could supercharge your returns over the next five years and beyond," <a href="https://www.fool.com/investing/2026/02/26/growth-stock-supercharge-invest-return-5-years/">argues</a>&nbsp;Motley Fool contributing analyst Neil Patel. The company’s stock is trading about 45% below its peak even as its fundamentals remain strong, he says, creating an attractive entry point for investors.

Motley Fool analyst likes growing U.S. coffee chain Dutch Bros on dip

Small Caps

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