The S&P 500 fell on Tuesday, weighed down by losses in technology stocks and higher oil prices, as traders reacted to a warmer-than-expected annual consumer price index for April.
The broad market index was lower by 0.3% and the Nasdaq Composite fell by 1.1%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average traded around stagnant.
Micron Technology – which led the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite to record highs on Monday – reversed course, falling more than 10%. The stock has risen more than 37% in the past week and about 53% in the past month amid a rally in memory chips.
Advanced Micro Devices and Qualcomm also fell 6% and 14%, respectively. In the past month, AMD is up more than 74%, while Qualcomm has gained more than 39%.
Meanwhile, West Texas Intermediate futures jumped 3% to trade above $101 a barrel. Brent crude rose by 3% to reach above $107. Those gains followed progress on Monday after President Donald Trump called the month-old US-Iran truce “incredibly weak” and “relying on massive life support” after rejecting an “unacceptable” counter-proposal from Tehran to end the war.
In its latest counteroffer, Iran insisted on war reparations, full sovereignty over the Strait of Hormuz, the release of frozen Iranian assets and the lifting of economic sanctions.
With energy prices high, traders are closely monitoring the impact of the Iran war on inflation and consumption, which still makes up about two-thirds of the economy, SEEbiz reports.
In April, the consumer price index rose by 0.6%, bringing the annual inflation rate to 3.8%, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. While the monthly rise in headline inflation was in line with expectations, economists polled by Dow Jones had forecast a 3.7% rise from a year earlier. That annual inflation rate was the highest since May 2023.
