Wall Street’s early rally faded Monday morning as weakness in semiconductor stocks pulled the S&P 500 back toward flat and sent the Nasdaq Composite lower. The Dow Jones Industrial Average held onto a modest gain, creating a divided market as investors weighed falling oil prices against renewed pressure on technology shares.
At about 11:25 a.m. ET, the S&P 500 stood near 7,409.63, almost unchanged for the session after climbing as high as 7,480.57. The Dow Jones was up about 180 points, or 0.35%, at 52,133.20, while the Nasdaq Composite fell roughly 0.6%.
Stocks opened sharply higher after the United States and Iran paused hostilities, easing immediate concerns about oil supplies and another inflation shock. However, the initial relief rally lost momentum as investors returned their attention to chip competition, artificial intelligence spending and a busy week of earnings.
Oil prices fell more than 5%, helping airlines, cruise operators and other companies with heavy fuel costs. Energy producers moved lower with crude. Bond yields also eased, with the 10-year Treasury yield falling to about 4.65% from 4.69% late Friday, reducing some of the pressure that higher borrowing costs place on stocks.
Nvidia and Micron Weigh on the Nasdaq
Semiconductor stocks became the market’s main weak point. Nvidia fell about 3.9%, while Micron dropped more than 6% as investors reacted to the strong Shanghai debut of Chinese memory-chip producer CXMT and the prospect of greater competition.
Microsoft and Apple traded higher, preventing an even steeper decline in the major indexes. Still, the split within technology shows that investors are becoming more selective ahead of earnings from Microsoft, Meta, Amazon and Apple.
S&P 500 Tests a Critical Technical Level
The S&P 500 chart shows the index sitting almost directly on its 50-day exponential moving average near 7,411. That makes the 7,400 to 7,411 area the most important short-term pivot.
A recovery above that zone could allow the S&P 500 to challenge 7,465 to 7,480, followed by the psychological 7,500 level. A stronger breakout would reopen the path toward the recent highs around 7,580 to 7,600.
However, a sustained break below Monday’s intraday low near 7,383 would weaken the setup and expose support around 7,300. The broader advance from the April lows remains visible, but the recent lower highs show that upward momentum has slowed.
Dow Jones Holds Above Support
The Dow Jones chart looks firmer. The index remains slightly above its 50-period moving average near 52,062, while its relative strength index stands at 48.5, a neutral reading.
Holding above 52,000 would keep the rebound intact and place resistance near 52,600, followed by the recent peak around 53,000. A drop below 52,000 could shift attention toward the 51,700 to 51,800 support area.
The Federal Reserve begins a two-day meeting Tuesday and will release its decision Wednesday. With inflation data and major technology earnings also approaching, the S&P 500 and Dow Jones could remain volatile even as geopolitical tensions ease.
