S&P Edges Up as AI Stocks Sink, Oil Drops on Iran Hopes
Get the Finance newsletter
Daily finance — markets, central banks, M&A, the prints that move money. Free.
- S&P 500 rose 0.2% heading toward a third straight gain after five consecutive losses, with the Dow adding 269 points (0.5%); the Nasdaq composite slipped 0.1% under pressure from tech heavyweights.
- General Mills jumped 7.1% after beating analyst profit expectations and unveiling a plan to cut US$3 billion in costs over the next four years.
- An ISM manufacturing survey showed continued factory growth at a slightly slower pace, easing the 10-year Treasury yield from a morning peak near 4.50% down to 4.46% and taking pressure off inflation fears.
- Micron Technology fell 8.8%, Applied Materials dropped 8%, and Nvidia slipped 1.5% as stocks that had ridden the AI euphoria reversed amid worries they had become too expensive.
- Kroger sank 1.1% after agreeing to buy grocery and pharmacy chain Giant Eagle for $1.25 billion in cash plus $400 million in liabilities.
- Brent crude dropped 2.3% to $71.29 a barrel on optimism that ongoing US-Iran talks could end their war and reopen the Strait of Hormuz to oil tankers.
Why it matters: The cooling manufacturing report gave the Fed implicit cover by pulling 10-year yields from 4.50% to 4.46%, relieving borrowing pressure across markets — but the 8.8% drop in Micron and 8% drop in Applied Materials show how narrow the recent rally has become, with valuation-weary investors rotating away from the AI trade that had driven most of 2025's gains.
