U.S. stocks closed mixed to start November, with the Dow industrial average moving higher while the S&P 500 and both Nasdaq indices finished lower. The Nasdaq 100 led the declines with a 1.39% fall as selling continued across semiconductor and AI-related shares.
The session started with hopes for a recovery after a difficult October for technology stocks. Lower oil prices amid renewed optimism around U.S.-Iran negotiations helped the early mood. However, that relief was not enough to keep the broader indices higher. Buyers had their shot, but the closing numbers show they could not hold control.
Attention now turns to Apple and Palantir earnings after the close and Tuesday’s U.S. midterm elections. Those events give traders fresh catalysts as they assess whether the technology sector can find its footing.
U.S. stock-market closing levels
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Dow Industrial Average: +214.02 points (+0.41%) at 51,989.19.
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S&P 500: −38.67 points (−0.51%) at 7,541.40.
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Nasdaq Composite: −272.68 points (−1.07%) at 25,164.32.
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Russell 2000: −5.97 points (−0.21%) at 2,805.88.
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Nasdaq 100: −395.03 points (−1.39%) at 27,989.82.
The Dow’s gain stood apart from the broader market. Small caps also finished lower, although their decline was considerably smaller than the losses in the Nasdaq indices. This was another session in which the index being watched made a meaningful difference.
Magnificent Seven: Amazon and Tesla move against the tide
Amazon and Tesla provided pockets of strength, but five of the seven megacap names finished lower. Microsoft suffered the largest percentage decline.
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Amazon: +2.20% to $245.63.
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Tesla: +1.00% to $403.82.
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Alphabet: −0.30% to $278.99.
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Nvidia: −1.26% to $202.06.
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Meta Platforms: −1.34% to $606.73.
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Apple: −1.54% to $339.31.
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Microsoft: −2.83% to $507.12.
Amazon’s rebound was encouraging for buyers after last week’s earnings-related weakness. However, gains in two of the largest technology-related names were not enough to lift either Nasdaq index.
AI selling spreads across the supply chain
The weakness extended beyond the companies designing processors. Optical components, networking chips, memory, storage, cloud infrastructure and software all featured among the notable decliners.
Grouping the supplied names by what they do shows how widely the selling reached:
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Optical communications: Lumentum fell 18.59% to $684.40. Its optical components help transmit data across high-speed networks and data centers.
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Data-center connectivity and networking chips: Marvell fell 12.72% to $171.41, Astera Labs lost 11.22% to $229.67, and Credo Technology declined 7.27% to $140.02.
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Processors and semiconductor manufacturing: Intel dropped 8.80% to $59.97, while Advanced Micro Devices fell 7.52% to $466.84.
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Memory and storage: Western Digital declined 7.52% to $338.59, Sandisk lost 6.59% to $1,075.08, and Micron fell 5.85% to $832.94.
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AI cloud infrastructure: CoreWeave fell 8.60% to $50.15, while Nebius declined 8.27% to $141.39.
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Cloud monitoring and software: Datadog lost 8.15% to $216.10.
These companies occupy different parts of the technology ecosystem. Their shared exposure to data-center growth and AI investment helps explain why traders watch them together, although their businesses and individual risks differ.
Intel fails to find relief
Intel remained a notable weak spot following its sharp post-earnings decline last week. Shares fell another $5.79, or 8.80%, to $59.97.
For buyers looking for stabilization, another sizable decline offered little reassurance. A stock can look considerably cheaper after a sharp
This article was written by Greg Michalowski at investinglive.com.