NEW YORK, June 26, 2026, 11:02 EDT
- S&P 500 (INDEXSP:.INX) showed little change on delayed LSEG data. The iShares Semiconductor ETF (NASDAQ:SOXX) dropped 4.67% at around 10:47 a.m. ET.
- Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT), Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL), and Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN) gained. Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA), Micron Technology (NASDAQ:MU), and Advanced Micro Devices (NASDAQ:AMD) traded lower.
- June’s final read on consumer sentiment ticked up to 49.5, but one-year inflation expectations held at 4.6%. Markets now look to next week’s jobs data for the next signal on rates.
Wall Street stocks held near the flat line late Friday morning, with weaker action out of the gate. Underneath, AI names saw a wide divergence. The S&P 500 (INDEXSP:.INX) slipped 0.03% to 7,355.65, Reuters/LSEG data showed. The Nasdaq Composite (INDEXNASDAQ:.IXIC) lost 0.26% to 25,293.70. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDEXDJX:.DJI) edged down 0.01% to 51,914.82. All data delayed at least 15 minutes.
Semi stocks saw the sharpest drop in the session. The iShares Semiconductor ETF (NASDAQ:SOXX) fell 4.67% as of 10:47 a.m. ET. By comparison, the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSEARCA:SPY) was off 0.22%. The Invesco QQQ Trust (NASDAQ:QQQ) slipped 0.78%. The SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF Trust (NYSEARCA:DIA) inched up 0.03%. The iShares Russell 2000 ETF (NYSEARCA:IWM) lost 0.10%. The chip ETF lagged the S&P 500 tracker by roughly 4.4 percentage points.
Gap stands out since it wasn’t straight risk-off. Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) jumped 4.19%, Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) picked up 1.50%, Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN) tacked on 1.68%. On the downside, Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA) dropped 1.48%, Micron Technology (NASDAQ:MU) was down 4.17%, Advanced Micro Devices (NASDAQ:AMD) fell 2.84%. Traders still bought into platform names and size, but memory and chip stocks took losses.
S&P 500 and Nasdaq pointed to sharp weekly declines early, Reuters said, as chip stocks took another hit. The Philadelphia SE Semiconductor index dropped 4.7% at 9:34 a.m. ET. Micron gave back gains after jumping over 15% in the previous session. Investors worried Apple’s higher prices for iPads and MacBooks signaled AI-related memory costs were hitting consumers. “The selling in the tech stocks is reflecting higher interest rates down the road,” said Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Spartan Capital Securities. Art Hogan from B. Riley Wealth called it a “comparable supply shock.” Reuters
Micron has more than price moves at play. According to Reuters, the company said customers like Nvidia have locked up $22 billion in memory-chip supply through take-or-pay contracts. Jake Behan at Direxion said “visibility is improving.” Micron’s Chief Business Officer Sumit Sadana said customers have put “billions of dollars” on Micron’s balance sheet. Reuters
Memory makers now see strong, cash-rich demand. But there’s a risk—shortages are pushing prices up for device makers and may drive inflation higher. Microsoft’s Xbox unit said prices for console storage and memory jumped more than 2.5 times and could double again by fall 2027. Xbox plans to hike console prices by as much as $150 starting Aug. 1.
Consumer sentiment data gave the market only a bit of support. The University of Michigan’s final June sentiment reading came in at 49.5, up from 44.8 in May but below the 50.0 the Reuters poll had forecast. “The cost of living remains at the forefront of consumers’ minds,” said survey director Joanne Hsu. One-year inflation expectations edged down to 4.6% from 4.8%, staying elevated for a market that started the year expecting cuts. Reuters
Fed rate risk isn’t gone. In a Reuters poll from June 23-25, over 75% of economists said the Fed would hold rates at 3.50% to 3.75% through the end of 2026. But traders still saw one 25-basis-point hike ahead and put odds of a second hike near 27% by year-end. Josh Hirt, senior U.S. economist at Vanguard, said “holding rather than hiking” makes sense for now. Reuters
Breadth stayed soft, but there was no clear washout. On the NYSE, decliners outpaced advancers 1.37 to 1. The Nasdaq had a 1.1 to 1 ratio of losers to gainers. The S&P 500 had 12 stocks at 52-week highs and four at new lows. The Nasdaq Composite booked 72 new highs and 91 new lows.
Synaptics (NASDAQ:SYNA) ticked up 0.58% and ON Semiconductor (NASDAQ:ON) lost 20.97% after ON agreed to acquire Synaptics in an all-stock deal worth around $7 billion. The move added another split in chips.
Russell Reconstitution wraps up after the U.S. close June 26, according to the NYSE calendar. Friday’s close could see choppy action from index mechanics. Reuters reported investors expect a surge in trading volume tied to Russell index changes.
Thursday’s June payrolls release is the next big data point. Jefferies economists see a 135,000 job increase, Reuters reported. U.S. financial markets are shut Friday for Independence Day. “If we do get a really good jobs number, my guess is the market’s not going to treat that as good news,” said Doug Huber, deputy chief investment officer at Wealth Enhancement. Reuters
