Tech Weakness Splits Wall Street as Blue Chips Hold Firm
On Thursday, technology shares fell sharply, pulling the Nasdaq and S&P 500 lower while the Dow and Russell 2000 finished slightly higher. The VIX jumped as investors grew more cautious, even as weekly jobless claims reached their lowest level since 2022. Semiconductor and AI-related stocks led losses, while energy, homebuilders, and defensive sectors gained.
Thursday’s session was sharply divided: the Nasdaq fell 2.60% and the S&P 500 lost 1.21%, while the Dow edged up 0.02% and the Russell 2000 gained 0.11%. The VIX rose 14.09% to 19.03, and weekly jobless claims dropped to 197,750, the lowest since 2022.
Semiconductor and AI shares led the decline, with printed circuit boards down 10.59% and semiconductors off 6.94%. Lam Research fell 11.8% after warning of cleanroom limits through 2027; AMD lost 8%, KLA 10%, and Meta 8% amid concerns over $825B in future spending. Energy rose as WTI gained 2.03% to 99.12, while gold fell 2.68%.
The split market could affect households unevenly: tech-heavy retirement and brokerage accounts may feel sharper paper losses, while small-cap and blue-chip holdings may cushion some portfolios. Higher crude prices could feed through to transport and consumer costs, and elevated volatility may make firms more cautious about hiring or investment. Investors nearing retirement may be especially sensitive to drawdowns, while defensive-sector gains could support some workers and local housing activity.