Nasdaq climbs as chip and AI-linked stocks bounce back

On Monday (Oct 19), the tech-focused Nasdaq Composite led Wall Street with a 1 percent gain, after a recent sell-off. This surge came as investors turned their attention back to the chip sector and artificial intelligence-related stocks. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq had both witnessed their biggest weekly declines since late June, driven by worries that rising interest rates might impede investments in AI infrastructure.

The sell-off was attributed to rising concerns over the high cost of developing AI technology, which has put pressure on companies backing the U.S. bull market, now entering its fourth year. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index, up 1.6 percent, ended an eight-day losing streak, which was the longest decline since October 2008. Michael James, equity sales trader at Rosenblatt Securities, attributed the rebound to a sentiment shift and an oversold market.

Several key corporate earnings reports were due soon, but James warned that the market was "far from out of the woods." Social media giant Meta, down 0.5 percent, and electric vehicle company Tesla, down 0.5 percent, would report results on Wednesday, while SpaceX would report on Tuesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 0.07 percent to 51,966.03, while the S&P 500 rose 0.41 percent to 7,690.73, and the Nasdaq Composite climbed 1.11 percent to 26,430.89.

However, the market's gains were largely driven by heavyweight stocks. Energy markets also saw a shift, with oil prices fluctuating. US crude oil futures rebounded 2.2 percent to $103.66 a barrel after Yemen's Houthis attacked a Yemeni military training camp and Saudi facilities. Among the S&P 500's 11 major industry sectors, seven closed lower.

Consumer discretionary led the pack with a 2.7 percent gain, while technology rose 1.2 percent. Defensive utilities and real estate were the biggest losers, with losses of 2 percent and 1.2 percent, respectively. Amazon experienced the strongest boost, up 5 percent after Morgan Stanley named the company its "top pick." Tesla also contributed significantly to the consumer sector with a 3.8 percent rise.

CoreWeave, the focus of last week's sell-off due to its more than 25 percent share plunge, ended the day down 0.4 percent after giving up early gains. Intel shares rose 2.4 percent after JP Morgan upgraded the stock to "neutral." The closing prices were marked by 15.27 billion shares traded, slightly lower than the 17.26 billion average for the past 20 sessions.