Stock market today: Big tech stocks dive again to halt Wall Street's record-setting rally
Wall Street’s record-breaking rally ran into a wall, as worries about potentially worsening trade tensions with China hit stocks of chip companies
NEW YORK — Wall Street’s record-breaking rally ran into a wall Wednesday, as worries about potentially worsening trade tensions with China hit stocks of chip companies. That dragged indexes to their worst day in months, but conditions may have been less discouraging underneath the surface.
The S&P 500 slumped 1.4% a day after setting an all-time high for the 38th time this year. Losses for Nvidia and other Big Tech heavyweights also dragged the Nasdaq composite to a loss of 2.8%, its worst drop since 2022.
But slightly more stocks in the S&P 500 nevertheless rose than fell, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 243 points, or 0.6%, to its record set a day earlier.
The mix offered a continuation of a recent trend that market watchers have called encouraging, one where more stocks are rising rather than just a handful of dominant elites. The smaller stocks in the Russell 2000 were coming off a big five-day winning streak on hopes that interest rates are about to get easier and the U.S. economy will avoid a recession, though the index fell 1.1% Wednesday to hand back some of the gains.
The market’s spotlight was squarely on chip companies, which tumbled after a report from Bloomberg News said President Joe Biden is considering the most severe trade restrictions available if companies like the Netherlands’ ASML and Japan’s Tokyo Electron continue to ship advanced semiconductor technology to China. The U.S. government has blocked Chinese access to advanced chips and the equipment to make them, citing security concerns, and urged its allies to follow suit.
ASML saw its
Read more on abcnews.go.com
