U.S., European stocks close lower

U.S. and European stocks ended lower on Thursday.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell by 739.42 points, or 1.56 percent, to 46,677.85. The S and P 500 sank 103.18 points, or 1.52 percent, to 6,672.62. The Nasdaq Composite Index shed 404.15 points, or 1.78 percent, to 22,311.98.

Eight of the 11 primary S and P 500 sectors ended in red, with industrials and consumer discretionary leading the laggards with declines of 2.52 percent and 2.21 percent, respectively. Energy and utilities led the gainers, rising 0.98 percent and 0.73 percent.

Meanwhile, European stocks also ended the day lower.

The FTSE 100 Index closed at 10,305.15 points, down 48.62 points, or 0.47 percent. The Paris CAC 40 closed at 7,984.44 points, down 57.37 points, or 0.71 percent. The DAX Index closed at 23,589.65 points, down 50.38 points, or 0.21 percent.

China urges the United States to return to talks and immediately stop military actions, said Fu Cong, China's permanent representative to the United Nations, on Thursday.

The United States, as the rotating president of the UN Security Council for March, convened a Security Council meeting under the "non-proliferation" agenda item and pushed forward the work of the Security Council Sanctions Committee (1737 Committee) related to the Iran issue. China and Russia explicitly opposed this.

Speaking at the meeting, Fu said that the "snapback" sanctions mechanism for Iran has procedural and legal flaws and urged the United States and Israel to immediately cease military actions and refrain from attacking Iranian nuclear facilities that are under the safeguards of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), in order to prevent further escalation of the situation and the spillover of the conflict.

After the meeting commenced, Russia raised a procedural motion opposing the consideration of this matter under the "non-proliferation" agenda item, and China expressed support for the Russian motion.

However, the Security Council adopted the meeting agenda with 11 votes in favor, two against, and two abstentions. China and Russia voted against.

In his statement following the vote, Fu pointed out that the current situation surrounding the Iranian nuclear issue remains tense. The pressing priority to resolve the issue is to cease the conflict and prevent escalation and avoid the spread of the war across the entire Middle East region, he said.

"Resorting to force is not the right way to resolve international disputes. The national sovereignty, security, and territorial integrity of Iran must be respected. The United States and Israel should immediately cease military actions, refrain from attacking Iranian nuclear facilities that are under the safeguards of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), avoid further escalation of tensions and keep the conflict from spreading across the entire Middle East region. We urge the United States to change course immediately, return to diplomatic negotiations, make a clear commitment not to use force, engage in sincere dialogue with Iran, and work toward a solution that meets the expectations of the international community," said Fu.

In 2006, the UN Security Council adopted Resolution 1737, imposing nuclear-related sanctions on Iran and establishing a specialized committee.

After the Iran nuclear deal was reached in 2015, the related sanctions were suspended under Resolution 2231, and the committee subsequently ceased operations.

At the end of August 2025, France, Germany, and the United Kingdom unilaterally issued a notification, claiming to trigger the "snapback" mechanism of the Iran nuclear deal, advocating for the reinstatement of previously suspended UN sanctions on Iran.