Stocks Rise as Earnings, Falling Oil Offset Chip Rout
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- The Nasdaq Composite hovered near the flat line after clawing back from earlier losses, while the S&P 500 rose roughly 0.4% and the Dow Jones climbed 1.2% as investors weighed a heavy batch of quarterly results.
- Coca-Cola (KO) surged 5% — putting the stock on track for its best day since 2009 — with Boeing (BA) and PayPal (PYPL) also advancing after reporting earnings.
- Nvidia (NVDA) is exploring a $250 billion funding backstop for OpenAI, further intertwining the two companies and stoking fresh fears of circular financing in the AI sector.
- Oil prices kept retreating after the US and Iran halted active fighting and President Trump said the two sides are in diplomatic talks, telling reporters, "If it doesn't, we go back to doing what we were doing."
- The Federal Reserve opened its two-day policy meeting with traders leaning toward a hold, though the article notes a rate hike remains on the table.
- SK Hynix (SKHY) slid 8.98% ahead of results due around 8 p.m. ET that traders are watching for signals on the AI memory trade.
- US consumer confidence slipped to 90.8 in July, with the Conference Board citing softening labor market perceptions.
Why it matters: The session exposed a sharp split: the Dow gained 1.2% on blue-chip earnings while the Nasdaq stalled near flat as a reported $250 billion Nvidia-OpenAI backstop reignited circular-financing fears in chips. With the Fed's decision pending and consumer confidence softening to 90.8, the market is being pulled between solid corporate results and structural doubts about AI-sector funding.
