The Dow Jones Industrial Average plunged as many as 945 points before finishing with a loss of 453, or 0.9%, and the Nasdaq composite sank 1.6%.

The U.S. stock market is holding steadier Wednesday following two days of punishing swings driven by worries about how high oil prices will go because of the war with Iran.

Sharp increases there are raising worries that a long-term spike could exhaust households’ ability to spend, grind down the global economy and push interest rates higher.