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Informist, Wednesday, Jul. 1, 2026                                      Tel +91 (22) 6985-4000

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Equity Alert: US mkt ends up as chip stocks gain; Dow sets new closing high

 

MUMBAI--0730 IST--US equity indices ended higher on Tuesday, marking the end of the second quarter and the first half of the year. Stocks of chipmakers led the gains. The Dow Jones index witnessed a record closing high for the second session in a row, though peers S&P 500 and Nasdaq saw sharper gains. Shares of Advanced Micro Devices were among the highest gainers. The stock ended nearly 8% higher, while peer Intel closed 6% higher. Sector leader Nvidia was also among the gainers and ended nearly 3% higher.

 

Despite the geopolitical volatility that characterised the first half of the year, major indices rose 8–13% over the period. Volatility in energy prices due to the US-Iran war as well as scepticism towards artificial intelligence-related spending were the main factors that played on the market sentiment in the first half. Nevertheless, all major indices hit their respective record highs during this period. Further, stocks fared better in the second quarter of the year, as fears around the AI trade eased and a resolution to the war appeared to be in sight, according to a CNBC report.

 

The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained over 8% in the first six months of the year, while the S&P 500 climbed over 9%. The Nasdaq outperformed its peers during this period with a near 13% gain, CNBC reported. "For me the lesson of the first half of 2026 is that earnings matter more than just about anything, except for maybe interest rates," Tim Holland, chief investment officer at Orion, told CNBC. 

 

Unless hostilities resume between the US and Iran, Holland expects the bull market to continue for the rest of the year and sees investors moving more into cheaper areas of the market. "Interest rates are probably going to be a little elevated, which tends to be a headwind for higher-price growth stocks, but tends to be a tail wind for economically sensitive stocks and the like," according to Holland.

 

Following were the closing levels of major US indices on Tuesday:

 

US Indices	Levels	Change in %
Dow Jones Industrial Average	52319.2	0.3
NASDAQ Composite	26213.72	1.5
S&P 500	7499.36	0.8

 

(Shruti Nair)

 

US$1 = INR 94.66

IST, or Indian Standard Time, is five-and-a-half hours ahead of GMT

 

Edited by Avishek Dutta

 

All prices from National Stock Exchange, unless otherwise specified.

All percentage changes for share prices are rounded off to the nearest whole number; percentage changes for index values are rounded off to one decimal place.

All times are Indian Standard Time.

 

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