Nasdaq Hits Record High as Semiconductors Rally; Dow Tumbles on Housing, Oil Stock Weakness

Tech stocks surged on Nvidia-led semiconductor gains, lifting the Nasdaq while broader markets fell amid housing, oil and banking sector declines.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq rose 37.47 points (0.2%) to a new record closing high of 20,677.80, the S&P 500 fell 24.80 points (0.4%) to 6,243.76 and the Dow slumped 436.36 points (1%) to 44,023.29.

Nasdaq increased amid strength in the semiconductor stocks, as reflected by the 1.3% gain posted by the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index. Nvidia (NVDA) helped lead the sector higher, with the AI darling surging by 4% to a record closing high after indicating it will "soon" resume H20 AI chip sales to China.

 

Housing stocks moved sharply lower, resulting in a 3.3% plunge by the Philadelphia Housing Sector Index. Oil service stocks also slumped amid a decrease by the price of crude oil, dragging the Philadelphia Oil Service Index down by 3.1%. Banking, pharmaceutical and biotechnology stocks also saw considerable weakness, contributing to the pullback by the broader markets.

Labor department released a report showing consumer prices in the U.S. increased in line with economist estimates in the month of June. Its consumer price index rose by 0.3% in June after inching up by 0.1% in May. The annual rate of consumer price growth accelerated to 2.7% in June from 2.4% in July. It also said the core consumer price index, which excludes food and energy prices, edged up by 0.2% in June after creeping up by 0.1% in May. Buying interest waned over the course of the session, however, with concerns about President Donald Trump's trade wars still hanging over the markets.

Asia-Pacific stocks moved mostly higher. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index climbed by 0.6% and Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index jumped by 1.6%, although China's Shanghai Composite Index bucked the uptrend and fell by 0.4%. The major European markets moved to the downside over the course of the session. While the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index slid by 0.7%, the French CAC 40 Index decreased by 0.4% and the German DAX Index dipped by 0.4%.

In the bond market, treasuries saw considerable weakness following the inflation data. As a result, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, jumped 6.2 bps to a one-month closing high of 4.48%.

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