Stock Markets Mixed as Tech Gains Fade and Oil Prices Continue to Decline
U.S. stock markets showed mixed performance on June 24 as investors became cautious about tech stocks amid doubts over AI spending returns, while oil prices hit multi-month lows.
Market Performance
The Nasdaq Composite pulled back on Wednesday as Micron Technology shares fell, with investors looking ahead to the release of chipmaker's earnings after the bell. The tech-heavy index slipped 0.43% to end at 25,476.64, while the S&P 500 declined 0.10% to 7,358.22. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 182.06 points, or 0.35%, to end at 51,848.90.
Oil Price Movements
Oil prices continued their decline Wednesday. International benchmark Brent crude futures lost 4.33% to settle at $73.74 per barrel, seeing its lowest level since before the U.S. and Israel first launched airstrikes against Iran at the end of February. U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures slid 3.92% to settle at $70.34 a barrel and had earlier hit its lowest level since early March. The decline reflects easing geopolitical tensions, particularly following progress in U.S.-Iran negotiations.
Tech Stock Concerns
Investors are selling off AI-related stocks as doubts are starting to surface over whether the massive spending on AI is worth the investment and whether it's "one big bubble." Micron has had an astronomical run in 2026, with shares hitting a new all-time high on Monday and ending Tuesday at $1,051.77 per share. But Jay Woods, chief market strategist at Freedom Capital Markets, warned the stock could fall after the earnings report.
Fed and Interest Rates
Sen. Elizabeth Warren said Wednesday that Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh has no good alternatives when it comes to interest rate policy. "Donald Trump has put Kevin Warsh and the Fed in a box," Warren, D-Mass., said on CNBC. "If they raise interest rates, that puts the squeeze harder on American families and unemployment, and if they lower interest rates, Donald Trump's increases, because of tariffs, because of energy policies, really threatens runaway inflation."