NEW YORK, July 22, 2026, 12:03 EDT — Wall Street began cash trading with U.S. equities little changed.
- According to delayed quotes, the S&P 500 proxy rose 0.1%. The Dow proxy advanced 0.3%, and the Nasdaq-100 proxy remained almost unchanged.
- Energy led small caps, outperforming them by roughly 1.5 percentage points.
- Alphabet NASDAQ:GOOGL and Tesla NASDAQ:TSLA are scheduled to release earnings following the market close. AT&T NYSE:T gained 2.7%, and Super Micro Computer NASDAQ:SMCI jumped 23.9%.
U.S. stocks hovered near unchanged levels at midday on Wednesday, as gains in the Dow and energy shares balanced out declines among small-caps ahead of significant earnings from leading technology companies.
The relevant signal lagged behind the benchmarks. Energy led small caps by 1.5 percentage points, a difference far greater than the S&P proxy’s 0.1% increase.
| Live market proxy | Price | Day move |
|---|---|---|
| SPY — S&P 500 | $749.21 | +0.1% |
| QQQ — Nasdaq-100 | $708.63 | Unchanged |
| DIA — Dow Jones | $523.03 | +0.3% |
| IWM — Russell 2000 | $294.66 | -0.6% |
| XLE — Energy | $59.02 | +0.9% |
| XLK — Technology | $180.83 | Unchanged |
Quotes delayed as of about 11:48 a.m. EDT.
The trend indicates sector rotation rather than broad-based selling. Investors sought inflation-protected cash flows and moved away from domestic stocks sensitive to interest rates.
Brent crude was up 3.1% at $93.83, after temporarily surpassing $95 earlier on Wednesday. The yield on the 10-year Treasury climbed to 4.65% from 4.63% on Tuesday.
The yield was 3.97% prior to the onset of the Iran conflict. Increased oil prices and borrowing costs pose risks to margins in sectors other than energy. These factors also push up the discount rate used for valuing future earnings.
The step impacts a market where pricing is already under strain. Producer prices in June increased 5.5% compared to the same month last year. Energy costs surged 23.0%, with transportation and warehousing up 13.9%. Data remain preliminary and are not adjusted for seasonal variations.
Market breadth remained in positive territory at the open, with advancers outnumbering decliners by a ratio of 1.25-to-one on the NYSE. On the Nasdaq, the ratio stood at 1.29-to-one. However, the Nasdaq saw 44 stocks hit new lows, compared to 27 new highs.
AT&T shares rose 2.7% to $22.85 after the company announced 432,000 net postpaid phone additions. The firm posted $31.6 billion in revenue and generated $4.7 billion in free cash flow.
Super Micro surged 23.9% to $31.60. The company projected preliminary gross margins between 15% and 17%, up from the earlier guidance of 8.2% to 8.4%.
Fourth-quarter orders surpassed $60 billion, but projected revenue was close to the lower boundary of the $11 billion to $12.5 billion forecast. The company noted that some orders could be cancelled or postponed.
The two advancing stocks illustrate Wednesday’s stock-picking sentiment. AT&T delivered gains in subscriber numbers and cash flow, while Super Micro benefited from a margin revision, even though sales were weaker.
Alphabet gained 0.2%, while Tesla edged down 0.1%. Both firms are scheduled to report earnings after Wednesday’s close. CFRA strategist Sam Stovall commented: “The magnitude of capex spending will be central to both Tesla and Alphabet.” Reuters
The upcoming $13 billion auction of 20-year Treasury bonds presents the latest challenge for interest rate expectations. Softer demand may maintain pressure on small-cap stocks and other shares sensitive to rates.
Risks continue to be balanced on both sides. A decline in oil prices or robust demand for Treasuries may reduce the sector disparity. However, ongoing shipping disruptions, disappointing AI performance, or any changes to Super Micro’s preliminary results could increase the gap.
The afternoon assessment is straightforward. A bounce in small-caps would signal rotation. Ongoing energy sector strength would indicate that stable indexes are concealing tighter financial conditions.
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