Stock market today: Nasdaq jumps 1.29 percent, Hang Seng falls and DAX gains as chip rebound meets oil risks
Global stock markets presented a mixed picture on Wednesday, as a powerful rebound in semiconductor shares lifted Wall Street and European equities, while rising oil prices and escalating Middle East supply risks limited gains across Asia.
Investors were also positioning for quarterly results from Alphabet and Tesla, which could provide fresh indications about artificial intelligence spending, technology demand and stretched sector valuations.
The MSCI World Index edged 0.03 percent higher to 4,837.59 points, reflecting the narrow overall movement across developed markets. S&P 500 futures slipped approximately 0.2 percent during Asian trading as investors reduced risk before the technology earnings announcements.
The global session highlighted a widening divide between renewed optimism around semiconductor and AI companies and concerns that higher energy costs could revive inflation and keep interest rates elevated.
Wall Street rebounds
US stocks closed sharply higher on Tuesday as investors returned to semiconductor companies following their recent selloff.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 385.38 points, or 0.74 percent, to close at 52,224.64. The S&P 500 advanced 65.92 points, or 0.89 percent, to 7,509.20.
The technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite outperformed the other major indexes, jumping 329.13 points, or 1.29 percent, to 25,837.21.
The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies climbed 1.53 percent to 2,987.40, indicating that the advance extended beyond the largest technology companies. Meanwhile, the CBOE Volatility Index, Wall Street’s principal measure of expected market turbulence, fell 8.58 percent to 17.05.
Nine of the S&P 500’s 11 main sectors finished higher, demonstrating relatively broad market participation despite technology’s outsized contribution.
Chip stocks surge
The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index surged 5.2 percent, recording a second consecutive advance as investors bought back into chip stocks before major technology companies reported quarterly results.
The index had ended the previous week more than 20 percent below its record high reached in late June, creating an opportunity for investors seeking lower entry prices.
Sandisk led the S&P 500 with a 14.3 percent gain. Western Digital rose 12.5 percent, while Micron Technology climbed 12.2 percent.
Information technology was the strongest S&P 500 sector, advancing 2.35 percent. Consumer staples declined 1 percent, while communication services lost 0.85 percent.
The chip rebound indicated that investors remained willing to return quickly to AI-related shares after sharp declines, although upcoming earnings and corporate guidance will determine whether the recovery can be sustained.
Corporate forecasts improve
Beyond technology, 3M jumped 7.3 percent after raising its annual profit forecast. Hasbro rallied 8.8 percent after the company issued improved revenue and earnings guidance.
The positive responses demonstrated that investors continued to reward companies capable of delivering stronger forecasts despite trade uncertainty, elevated borrowing costs and geopolitical disruption.
However, not every earnings announcement was received positively. Danaher, MSCI and Genuine Parts declined after issuing weaker forecasts, while market activity remained below the recent average.
Wall Street also absorbed President Donald Trump’s announcement of 50 percent tariffs on a broad range of Canadian imports. The tariff development had limited effect on the major indexes as investors concentrated on technology earnings and the semiconductor rebound.
Oil prices had climbed approximately 2 percent on Tuesday after reaching five-week highs, but the immediate effect on US equities remained contained.
Europe extends gains
European stocks also ended Tuesday higher as technology and mining gains outweighed concerns about the widening Middle East conflict.
The pan-European STOXX 600 rose 0.6 percent to 643.19, ending a two-session losing streak.
Germany’s DAX gained 0.66 percent to 25,011.35, while Britain’s FTSE 100 advanced 0.58 percent to 10,585.91. France’s CAC 40 added 0.28 percent to 8,363.14.
The Euro STOXX 50 climbed 0.90 percent to 6,283.15. Spain’s IBEX 35 rose 0.90 percent, Italy’s FTSE MIB gained 0.81 percent and Portugal’s PSI advanced 1.11 percent.
The broad gains showed that European investors were also returning to economically sensitive sectors, although the higher cost of energy remained an important risk to corporate margins and household spending.
Technology leads Europe
European technology shares led the regional recovery with a 2.1 percent advance as the rebound in global semiconductor stocks spread beyond Wall Street.
ASMI rose 5.4 percent, while ASML climbed 4.7 percent. Both companies supply equipment used in semiconductor manufacturing and are closely watched as indicators of investment across the global chip industry.
Mining shares advanced 1.7 percent alongside higher copper and gold prices. The gains helped offset a 1.4 percent decline in media stocks, which were the region’s weakest performers.
Swedish miner Boliden fell 5.7 percent following disappointing results. Julius Baer and Schindler declined more than 4 percent after their financial updates failed to meet investor expectations.
Novartis gained approximately 2 percent, while Mitie surged 39 percent after agreeing to be acquired by OCS Group, according to Reuters’ European market report.
ECB decision nears
Investors are now awaiting Thursday’s European Central Bank monetary policy decision.
Policymakers are widely expected to leave interest rates unchanged. However, markets continue to price in at least one increase of 25 basis points before the end of 2026 as energy prices threaten to strengthen inflationary pressure.
The ECB’s deposit facility rate currently stands at 2.25 percent, while the main refinancing operations rate is 2.40 percent and the marginal lending facility rate is 2.65 percent.
The central bank faces the challenge of balancing economic growth against the inflationary consequences of higher oil and gas prices. European economies are particularly sensitive to disruptions in global energy markets because of their substantial reliance on imported fuels.
The ECB’s guidance on energy inflation, wage growth and future policy adjustments could therefore influence European equities, government bonds and the euro.
Asian markets diverge
Asian stocks initially followed Wall Street higher but surrendered part of their gains as oil prices climbed and investors assessed escalating conflict in the Middle East.
The MSCI Asia-Pacific index outside Japan was approximately 0.2 percent higher after gaining as much as 1.2 percent earlier in the session.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 reversed an early advance and fell 0.37 percent to 65,984. The index had reached an intraday high of 67,604.50 before higher oil prices and a weak yen encouraged investors to take profits.
South Korea’s Kospi also surrendered much of its initial surge but remained 0.74 percent higher at 6,797.70.
Taiwan’s benchmark delivered the region’s strongest performance in the market snapshot, jumping 4.20 percent to 44,322.87 after encouraging technology export data strengthened confidence in semiconductor demand.
China markets decline
Mainland Chinese equities moved lower despite the earlier regional rally. The Shanghai Composite slipped 0.08 percent to 3,861.20, while the Shenzhen Component fell 1.35 percent to 14,071.73.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng dropped 1.29 percent to 24,808 as technology and consumer stocks came under pressure.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 gained 0.34 percent to 8,823, while New Zealand’s benchmark added 0.22 percent.
Elsewhere in Southeast Asia, Thailand’s SET declined 0.73 percent and Indonesia’s IDX Composite lost 0.39 percent. The Philippines’ PSEi fell 1.16 percent, while Vietnam’s VN30 dropped 1.63 percent.
The uneven movements reflected different levels of exposure to energy imports, technology exports, tariffs and changes in global investor appetite.
India faces pressure
Indian equities weakened as rising crude prices increased concerns about inflation, import costs and corporate profit margins.
The Nifty 50 fell 0.69 percent to 24,021.75, while the BSE Sensex declined 0.73 percent to 76,903.37.
Fifteen of India’s 16 major sectors traded lower. Pharmaceutical shares were among the weakest performers after the United States outlined phased tariffs on imported generic medicines.
India imports most of the crude oil it consumes, making its economy and currency particularly sensitive to rapid increases in international energy prices. Higher crude costs can widen the trade deficit, increase transportation expenses and reduce profitability for companies unable to pass costs to customers.
The decline consequently reflected both global risk aversion and India-specific concerns about the economic consequences of Brent crude trading above $90.
Oil risks intensify
Oil remained the main risk to market sentiment. Brent crude rose 1.1 percent to $92.01 per barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate gained 1 percent to $85.16.
Three tankers carrying Saudi crude to customers in China and India reversed direction in the Red Sea after Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi movement threatened vessels transporting Saudi oil.
The United States also carried out attacks against Iranian military targets for an 11th consecutive night, while Iran struck American facilities in Bahrain, Kuwait and Jordan.
The combination of tanker diversions, fresh military attacks and continuing restrictions around the Strait of Hormuz heightened fears of supply disruption.
Markets were therefore balancing renewed enthusiasm for technology companies against the possibility that expensive energy could raise inflation, weaken consumer demand and keep global borrowing costs elevated.
Earnings test rally
Alphabet is scheduled to discuss its second-quarter financial results after the US market closes on July 22. Its conference call will begin at 1:30 p.m. Pacific Time, or 4:30 p.m. Eastern Time, according to the company’s official investor announcement.
Investors will focus on Alphabet’s capital expenditure, cloud-computing growth, advertising demand and progress in commercialising artificial intelligence. Those results could determine whether the rebound in semiconductor and data-centre companies continues.
Tesla will also publish its second-quarter results after Wednesday’s closing bell. The company delivered 480,126 vehicles and produced 451,758 during the quarter while deploying 13.5 gigawatt-hours of energy-storage products, according to its official quarterly update.
Tesla’s webcast is scheduled for 4:30 p.m. Central Time. Investors are expected to examine automotive margins, pricing, capital spending, cash flow and progress in autonomous-driving and AI initiatives.
Central banks awaited
The ECB’s two-day monetary policy meeting began on July 22, with the decision scheduled for July 23. The policy announcement will be released at 2:15 p.m. Central European Time, followed by a press conference at 2:45 p.m., according to the ECB’s official schedule.
Current ECB rates took effect on June 17, placing the deposit facility at 2.25 percent, the main refinancing rate at 2.40 percent and the marginal lending rate at 2.65 percent. The ECB’s press conference page confirms the current levels.
The US Federal Reserve will follow with its own policy meeting on July 28 and 29. The decision and press conference are scheduled for July 29, according to the Federal Reserve’s official calendar.
Central-bank guidance will be critical because higher oil prices are complicating the recent improvement in inflation figures.
Inflation risks return
US consumer inflation slowed to 3.5 percent annually in June from 4.2 percent in May, while core inflation eased to 2.6 percent. However, energy prices remained 15.7 percent higher than a year earlier, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Gasoline prices were 26.7 percent higher annually, fuel oil had increased 42.9 percent and electricity prices were up 4 percent. Those figures illustrate why another sustained rise in crude oil could affect interest-rate expectations and equity valuations.
The US Energy Information Administration expects global oil consumption to fall by approximately one million barrels per day in 2026 because high prices, supply constraints and government measures are reducing demand. The EIA said weaker consumption could limit price increases caused by disruption around the Strait of Hormuz.
Nevertheless, continued supply threats could keep pressure on inflation-sensitive sectors. Technology earnings, oil prices and central-bank guidance will determine whether Wednesday’s chip-led recovery develops into a broader global rally.
