NEW YORK, July 9, 2026, 12:08 p.m. EDT
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDEXDJX:.DJI) moved higher midday Thursday, with most of the push coming from Cisco Systems NASDAQ:CSCO and Goldman Sachs Group NYSE:GS flexing more weight than the broader index move pointed to.
The Dow is price-weighted, so it’s share-price swings that matter, not total market value. S&P Dow Jones Indices calls the Dow a price-weighted index of 30 big U.S. companies, without transportation or utilities. In practice, a stock with a high price has more pull on the Dow than a larger company at a lower price.
The major averages bounced after Wednesday’s drop. The Dow edged up 167.18 points, or 0.32%, to 52,515.57, according to MarketWatch data. The S&P 500 (INDEXSP:.INX) added 0.57%, with the Nasdaq Composite (INDEXNASDAQ:.IXIC) up 0.76%. WTI crude slipped 1.74%, while gold traded up 1.37%. MarketWatch lists its intraday numbers as delayed by at least 15 minutes.
| Market measure | Latest | Change | Read-through |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dow Jones Industrial Average | 52,515.57 | +167.18 / +0.32% | Blue chips bounced but still trailed tech stocks |
| S&P 500 | 7,525.16 | +42.45 / +0.57% | Risk appetite stuck around |
| Nasdaq Composite | 26,066.88 | +196.23 / +0.76% | Chip, AI, other tech carried Nasdaq |
| WTI crude | $72.24 | -$1.28 / -1.74% | Oil pressure let up for now |
| Gold | $4,138.30 | +$55.90 / +1.37% | Safe-haven trade still in play |
As of 11 a.m. ET, MarketWatch Automation noted Cisco and Goldman were out front on the Dow, which was up around 141 points. Cisco added $4.17, or 3.7%, while Goldman was up $32.66, or 3.2%. MarketWatch figures a $1 swing in a Dow name means about 5.94 points on the index, so Cisco and Goldman together put in about 219 Dow points — that’s more than the Dow’s net move at that hour.
| Dow driver | Stock move cited | Approx. Dow-point effect | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cisco Systems NASDAQ:CSCO | added $4.17, up 3.7% | pushed the Dow up 25 points | Gave the Dow a boost from tech hardware |
| Goldman Sachs Group NYSE:GS | rose $32.66, up 3.2% | added 194 points to the Dow | Stock’s high price amplified its impact |
| Combined effect | — | total lift: 219 points | Bigger than the Dow’s net 11 a.m. gain |
| Dow at 11 a.m. | up 141 points, or 0.3% | — | Other stocks offset the gains from leaders |
MarketWatch said financial and healthcare stocks like American Express NYSE:AXP, JPMorgan Chase NYSE:JPM and UnitedHealth Group NYSE:UNH helped the Dow. But IBM NYSE:IBM and Microsoft NASDAQ:MSFT fell. Reuters said Bloomberg reported Starbucks NASDAQ:SBUX is using AI tools to reduce its use of IBM and Microsoft.
Chip stocks pushed the market higher. The Philadelphia semiconductor index jumped 5% early. Applied Materials NASDAQ:AMAT rose 9.4% and Micron Technology NASDAQ:MU gained 9% after Micron announced a plan to put over $250 billion into U.S. investment through 2035. Meta Platforms NASDAQ:META fell after Reuters said the company will start production on an AI chip in September. “The first-half rally in the S&P 500 and Nasdaq has been primarily driven by memory-storage providers,” said Michael Hewson, senior market analyst at iFOREX, adding that Middle East tensions create a “toxic combination.” Reuters
Labor data gave buyers room to move. Initial jobless claims dropped by 2,000 to 215,000 for the week ended July 4, under the 218,000 expected in a Reuters poll. That hinted layoffs haven’t increased yet. But minutes from the Fed’s June meeting out Wednesday showed some officials thought a rate hike last month was possible. LPL Financial chief economist Jeffrey Roach said there was “some ambiguity in the minutes” as policymakers debated their options. Reuters Reuters
The bounce isn’t without risk. The U.S. military said it carried out new strikes against Iran to keep the Strait of Hormuz open, according to Reuters, and Iran hit back with attacks on U.S. assets in Kuwait and Bahrain. Oil prices dropped by midday. Max Kettner, HSBC’s chief multi-asset strategist, said, “the rates market is really following oil prices,” adding that another jump in crude could push up inflation fears and move bond yields higher. Reuters Reuters
The Dow is trying to claw back after Wednesday’s drop, when it gave up 576.76 points, or 1.1%, to finish at 52,348.39. That fall came as oil prices rose and stocks got hit on fresh Iran-war headlines. The Dow’s still sitting about 1% under Monday’s level above 53,000; FRED shows it at 53,055.91 on July 6 and back down to 52,348.39 on July 8.
For the afternoon, the question is if the Dow can push higher outside of Cisco and Goldman. Oil holding steady, yields moving down, and chips staying strong would help keep momentum going. But if crude reverses or rates move up again, this could just turn into a price-weighted bounce instead of real buying in blue chips.
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