Wall Street extended losses into midday trading Tuesday as geopolitical tensions in the Middle East resurfaced, while gold staged a violent rebound after two days of historic selling.

• SPDR Gold Shares stock is charging ahead with explosive momentum. Why is GLD stock up today?

Gold — as tracked by the SPDR Gold Shares (NYSE:GLD) — surged more than 6%, vaulting past $4,950 per ounce and putting the metal on track for its strongest session since November 2008.

The rebound comes after a brutal sell-off sparked by fears that Kevin Warsh's appointment as the next Federal Reserve chair could usher in a more restrictive monetary policy regime — pressure that had weighed heavily on precious metals in recent sessions.

Silver also snapped back sharply, climbing nearly 9% to $86 after plunging more than 30% over the previous two sessions.

Energy markets reacted to renewed geopolitical stress. Crude oil rose 1.8% to $63 a barrel after U.S. officials told Reuters that American forces shot down an Iranian drone that approached a U.S. Navy aircraft carrier in the Arabian Sea.

After briefly flirting with the 7,000 level intraday, the S&P 500 slipped 0.5% to 6,920. The Nasdaq 100 underperformed, falling nearly 1.5% to 25,350.

The Russell 2000 slid 0.7%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average eased 0.5%.

Technology weakness remained concentrated in software names. The iShares Expanded Tech-Software Sector ETF (NYSE:IGV) dropped 4.8%, heading for a fifth consecutive daily decline.

Palantir Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ:PLTR) jumped nearly 8% after reporting earnings that topped expectations and issuing upbeat guidance.

Chevron Corp. (NYSE:CVX) rose over 2% to $177 per share, hitting a two-year high.

Adding to the sector's momentum, the U.S. government is preparing to issue a general license that would allow companies to pump oil in Venezuela, according to people familiar with the matter.

The move — expected as soon as this week — would mark a further easing of sanctions as part of the Trump administration's effort to revive Venezuela's struggling energy industry.

In digital assets, Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) resumed its decline, sliding more than 3% to around $75,000.

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