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June 24, 2026 - 20:51
5 minutes
(Bloomberg) — A drop in chipmakers ahead of Micron Technology Inc.’s earnings weighed on stocks, with the results expected to provide clues on whether this year’s artificial-intelligence rally will be justified.About 300 shares in the S&P 500 rose, but the index lost steam amid weakness in the high-profile tech group. Micron fell 3.5%. Oil’s wartime price gains have mostly evaporated as the US and Iran log progress in peace talks, with Brent sinking below $75. That helped ease concerns over inflation on the eve of a key report for the Federal Reserve, sending Treasury yields down.Micron’s results due after the closing bell is shaping up to be one of the most important in months as investors find themselves suddenly on edge over the sustainability of the AI rally.A geyser of cash coming from tech giants locked in a race to add data-center capacity has made the makers of computing components and equipment this year’s best-performing stocks. Micron has soared almost 300% in 2026. But concerns are mounting about how much longer the good times can last.“Will we see sell the news? Will they guide strongly and the stock fly, or is that already priced in?” said Ken Mahoney at Mahoney Asset Management. “We feel as though any report that’s not a blowout to the upside will see an excuse for further selling in tech.”While the recent tech weakness is unsettling, it looks more like a rotation and a rightsizing of positioning than a fundamentally driven alarm bell, according to Mark Hackett at Nationwide.“When stocks rise too much and too fast, a pullback almost always ensues,” said Rick Gardner at RGA Investments. “We would much rather be buying tech stocks on days when they are down, and the pullback can present an opportunity for investors who do not have adequate exposure to this space, which is still fundamentally strong.”At JPMorgan Chase & Co., strategists led by Dubravko Lakos-Bujas bet US stocks are approaching a “blue sky” scenario. They highlighted solid earnings and a potential peace deal to end the Iran war as key drivers while boosting their year-end target for the S&P 500 to 7,800. The gauge hovered near 7,350.Easing geopolitical tensions spurred a further slide in oil prices, curbing wagers on rate increases over the coming year. Those bets had peaked after last week’s Fed meeting, with traders fully pricing in two hikes by mid-2027. They’ve since ebbed, leaving about 40 basis points of tightening priced in.Yet the latest update to the Fed’s favorite inflation gauge is unlikely to challenge a growing consensus at the central bank around the need for hikes. Forecasters expect the personal consumption expenditures price index, due Thursday, to show acceleration on both a monthly and year-over-year basis in May.Corporate Highlights:Two leading artificial intelligence researchers at Alphabet Inc.’s Google are planning to leave for rival Anthropic PBC, according to people familiar with the matter, adding to a series of high-profile departures that risk undercutting the search giant’s position in AI. OpenAI unveiled its first custom AI chip developed in partnership with Broadcom Inc., part of a bid by the ChatGPT maker to gain an edge by tailoring hardware to better run its products. SK Hynix Inc. is seeking 45.45 trillion won ($29.4 billion) in a US listing, tapping investor demand for high-flying memory-chip stocks even after a major selloff shook the group this week. The meme-stock crowd is rallying behind another beaten up American icon — Wendy’s Co., the fast-food chain known for the Frosty, Dave’s Triple burger and the Biggie Deal. Hertz Global Holdings Inc. is taking an usual approach to issuing debt: concurrently serving up shares that are designed to be shorted. The company also warned that profit this quarter is trending toward the low end of its expectations. Some of the main moves in markets:StocksThe S&P 500 fell 0.3% as of 2:50 p.m. New York time The Nasdaq 100 fell 1% The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.4% The MSCI World Index fell 0.3% CurrenciesThe Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index rose 0.2% The euro fell 0.2% to $1.1356 The British pound fell 0.3% to $1.3164 The Japanese yen fell 0.1% to 161.78 per dollar CryptocurrenciesBitcoin fell 4.9% to $59,358.91 Ether fell 5.7% to $1,567.27 BondsThe yield on 10-year Treasuries declined 10 basis points to 4.40% Germany’s 10-year yield declined five basis points to 2.86% Britain’s 10-year yield declined seven basis points to 4.68% CommoditiesWest Texas Intermediate crude fell 4.3% to $70.05 a barrel Spot gold fell 3.4% to $3,977.88 an ounce ©2026 Bloomberg L.P.
