A trader works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York on Jul 14, 2026. (Photo: AFP/Timothy A. Clary)
17 Jul 2026 05:38AM
(Updated: 17 Jul 2026 08:11AM)
NEW YORK: Major stock markets mostly retreated Thursday (Jul 16) as semiconductor shares extended falls, while oil prices wobbled as the United States and Iran exchanged fresh strikes.Tech-driven losses in Asia came before European and US markets mostly traded lower."Fragile sentiment is leading to a continued pullback in memory chip stocks after their gravity-defying run as investors fret about elevated valuations," noted Dan Coatsworth, head of markets at AJ Bell trading group.Leading Wall Street equity indices pulled back, led by the tech-rich Nasdaq, which lost 1.5 per cent.Seoul's Kospi fell more than six per cent as chip titan SK hynix and Samsung both fell significantly amid growing anxiety that the AI rally - which had pushed both firms to record highs this year - had run its course.Traders are questioning whether the vast sums pumped into the AI sector in recent years will eventually pay off and justify the eye-watering valuations for some firms.Shares in TSMC fell in New York, even as the Taiwanese chipmaker issued positive forward guidance and announced that net profit soared more than 77 per cent to a record high in the second quarter thanks to massive demand for AI hardware. It said it would invest an additional US$100 billion in the US state of Arizona.Shares in Dutch firm ASML, which manufactures chip-making machines that underpin the tech industry, also fell after releasing blockbuster earnings on Wednesday."This all makes one wonder what US tech corporations will have to come up with to get investors genuinely excited again," said market analyst David Morrison at Trade Nation."This is important, as the earnings season picks up several gears over the next fortnight."
