U.S. stocks staged a broad rebound Thursday, led by a sharp rally in semiconductors, as a signed U.S.-Iran peace deal sent oil tumbling and an Intel-Apple chip manufacturing pact lit a fire under technology shares.
The rebound came one day after stocks slumped when the Federal Reserve – in Kevin Warsh's first meeting as chair – held its benchmark rate at 3.50%-3.75% but raised its inflation outlook and signaled a growing bias among officials toward hiking later this year.
Crude extended its slide after the U.S. and Iran signed a 14-point memorandum of understanding to extend the ceasefire and reopen the Strait of Hormuz, where three Saudi-flagged supertankers transited hours after the deal.
West Texas Intermediate crude fell 2.2% to around $75 a barrel, while Brent slipped 1.5% to roughly $78.
Oil has now dropped about 14% over five sessions to its lowest level since the conflict began, dragging the national average gasoline price below $4 a gallon for the first time since March.
Across U.S. equity markets by midday Thursday, gains were concentrated in megacap technology, with the rest of the tape mixed. The S&P 500 rose 1.2% to about 7,505, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.8% to near 51,905.
The Nasdaq 100 outperformed, climbing 1.5% to around 30,116 as chipmakers led the charge. The Russell 2000 bucked the trend, falling 0.7% to roughly 2,897 as small caps stayed pressured by the prospect of higher-for-longer interest rates.
Thursday's Performance In Major US Indices
According to market data:
- The Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO) gained 1.2%.
- The SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF Trust (DIA) rose 0.8%.
- The Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) climbed 1.5%.
- The iShares Russell 2000 ETF (IWM) slid 0.7%.
Chipmakers Soar On Intel-Apple Deal
The Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLK) led all S&P 500 sectors with a 2.8% gain as the semiconductor complex roared back, followed by the Utilities Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLU), up 1.8%. On the downside, the Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLE) was the clear laggard, falling 2.0% with crude, while the Health Care Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLV) slid 1.2%.
The VanEck Semiconductor ETF (SMH) surged 5.4% to pace all industries, with the iShares U.S. Home Construction ETF (ITB) up 4.1% and the U.S. Global Jets ETF (JETS) up 2.5% as airlines welcomed cheaper fuel.
At the bottom, the energy patch was hammered: the VanEck Oil Services ETF (OIH) tumbled 3.8%, the SPDR S&P Oil & Gas Exploration & Production ETF (XOP) fell 2.1%, and the VanEck Gold Miners ETF (GDX) dropped 2.0% as bullion retreated.
Intel Corp. (INTC) surged roughly 9.8% after President Donald Trump said on Truth Social that Apple Inc. (AAPL) had agreed to work with Intel to design and build its chips in America, a pact that would extend Intel's more than 400% run since Washington's 2025 investment in the chipmaker.
Peers rallied in sympathy, with Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (AMD) up 3.9%, Broadcom Inc. (AVGO) up 3%, and Micron Technology Inc. (MU) up 4.8% ahead of its results next week.
Marvell Technology Inc. (MRVL) climbed 12.1% and Astera Labs Inc. (ALAB) added 11.5%, both riding the AI-silicon rally. SanDisk Corp. (SNDK) rose 11.0% on the strength in memory pricing.
The downside was a near-wholesale repricing of IT services. Accenture plc (ACN) plunged 17.4% after the consulting giant cut its fiscal-year revenue-growth guidance, citing cautious enterprise spending and a slowdown in its U.S. federal business.
The read-through cratered the entire digital-consulting cohort: Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp. (CTSH) fell 10.4%, Globant S.A. (GLOB) dropped 9.9%, EPAM Systems Inc. (EPAM) lost 9.8%, and Genpact Ltd. (G) slid 8.7% – all on the Accenture read-across rather than company-specific news.
