MARKET SNAPSHOT
U.S. stocks moved higher, helped by a recovery in chip stocks as investors geared up for earnings from some of America's biggest tech companies. Treasurys fell, sending yields higher to conclude a day of light U.S. economic data ahead of the Federal Reserve's interest rate meeting next week. Oil futures extended their rally on continued strikes between the U.S. and Iran. The dollar strengthened. Gold and silver finished higher.
MARKET WRAPS
EQUITIES
U.S. stocks rose broadly Tuesday as chip shares staged a strong recovery and investors positioned for a wave of major technology earnings.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.7% The S&P 500 rose 0.9%, while the Nasdaq Composite gained 1.3%. According to preliminary data, there were 1,501 advancing issues and 1,232 declining issues on the NYSE.
The PHLX Semiconductor Index climbed 5.2%, leading a broad market recovery. The rebound came as investors looked past a new Chinese AI model unveiled this week and ahead to big tech earnings due Wednesday.
In Asia, South Korea's Kospi gained 3.6%, led by chipmaking index heavyweights Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix rising 6.2% and 4.1%, respectively. Taiwan's Taiex rose 4.2%, helped by a 3.9% rise for the world's largest chip maker, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Japan's Nikkei Stock Average gained 3.3% following a three-day holiday weekend, with SoftBank Group jumping 6%.
In China, the Shanghai Composite Index gained 1.8% and the Shenzhen Composite ended 3.6% higher. The ChiNext Price Index rose 7.1%, logging its biggest one-day gain since October 2024.
Australia's S&P/ASX 200 Benchmark Index closed flat, while New Zealand's S&P/NZX 50 Index fell 0.3%.
COMMODITIES
Oil futures rose for a third straight session as the U.S. and Iran continued strikes, while President Trump said the U.S. isn't interested in a meeting until Iran is ready to meet in what he called "a meaningful way."
His comments dampened expectations for a quick return to the negotiating table. "The market remains supported by elevated geopolitical risk, but any meaningful diplomatic breakthrough could quickly remove part of the current risk premium," analysts at Kotak Neo said in a note.
WTI for August delivery went off the board at $84.91 a barrel, up 2%, while the September contract rose 2.3% to $84.34. Brent settled up 2% at $91.01 a barrel.
Front-month gold and silver settled higher, getting a boost as equities also rose on strength in technology shares as earnings season heats up.
Silver rose for the third consecutive day, climbing 3.6% to $58.835 a troy ounce. Analysts have pointed to silver's usage in tech as a factor supporting the white metal.
Front-month gold finished 1.5% higher to $4,071.10/oz, making it two out of the past three sessions that gold has closed higher.
TODAY'S TOP HEADLINES
China AI Companies Rush to Raise Funds and Close Gap With U.S.
SINGAPORE-Chinese artificial-intelligence developers are racing to raise money through share offerings or loans, believing they need a bigger war chest to keep up with U.S. competitors.
At least six startups that develop AI models are preparing for initial public offerings in Shanghai or Hong Kong through 2027. They are joined by China's two largest memory-chip makers and three humanoid-robot developers.
A flurry of new releases from China has brought local AI models closer to cutting-edge U.S. systems. Yet researchers and executives at Chinese AI companies say a shortage of investment and chips is holding them back in competition with leading American companies.
America's Most Prolific Oil Field Has a Natural-Gas Problem
America's most prolific drilling region finds itself on the brink of being trapped between an uptick in drilling in response to rising energy prices and not enough ways to get product to market.
Earlier this year as the conflict between Iran and the U.S. drove global oil prices up, energy producers in the West Texas region known as the Permian Basin extracted so much natural gas as a byproduct of the oil they pumped that they had to pay increasing sums to users to take it because there wasn't enough pipeline capacity to get it to other customers.
In the first half of the year prices averaged negative $2.19 per million British thermal units at the region's Waha trading hub. In late April, when oil prices were near $100 a barrel, the gas price dropped to a record low of negative $7.95. That compares with $2.72 the same day at Henry Hub, a Louisiana pipeline junction where the national benchmark is set.
Kalshi Seeks to Launch Perpetual Futures for Precious Metals
Kalshi is asking regulators for permission to let users speculate on the price of gold, silver and platinum with a new kind of derivative contract that never expires.
The prediction-markets provider has filed with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission to start offering perpetual futures contracts linked to the spot price of precious metals.
The request comes after Kalshi got approval from the CFTC in May to launch the country's first set of perpetuals, which were linked to the price of cryptocurrencies. That approval now undergirds Kalshi's application to offer perpetuals on metals.
Jamie Dimon says he wouldn't buy Treasurys. 'I don't understand the upside.'
Jamie Dimon - long considered a potential candidate to be treasury secretary, and the person in charge of one of the nation's primary dealers of Treasury securities - says he wouldn't buy American debt.
"Personally, no," the chairman and chief executive of JPMorgan Chase JPM told the Master Investor with Wilfred Frost podcast.
"Even if inflation was 2%, the 10-year bond should probably be at 4.5% - 4% to 4.5% - and the short rate should be at 3.3%," he said. "And they're almost there today. So I don't understand what the upside is, even if you think inflation could go to 2%. And by the way, it's been over 3% for almost five years."
Airbus Comes for Boeing in Battle Over World's Biggest Jets
Airbus is moving closer to a decision on launching a new aircraft model that would be among the biggest passenger jets ever made and place Boeing's long-delayed 777X directly in its crosshairs.
The European plane maker has been weighing whether to lengthen the body of its existing A350, allowing airlines to carry more passengers, according to Tufan Erginbilgic, chief executive of Rolls-Royce, the exclusive supplier of engines for the airframe. A decision on whether to proceed could come within the next 12 months, which would enable first delivery in the early 2030s, he said.
A move would bring Airbus back into the market for the world's biggest passenger planes, a segment it abandoned after it discontinued its A380 double-decker in 2019. The superjumbo's demise left the runway clear for Boeing's coming 777X, which can seat as many as 450 passengers.
Kalshi Seeks to Launch Perpetual Futures for Precious Metals
Kalshi is asking regulators for permission to let users speculate on the price of gold, silver and platinum with a new kind of derivative contract that never expires.
The prediction-markets provider has filed with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission to start offering perpetual futures contracts linked to the spot price of precious metals.
The request comes after Kalshi got approval from the CFTC in May to launch the country's first set of perpetuals, which were linked to the price of cryptocurrencies. That approval now undergirds Kalshi's application to offer perpetuals on metals.
OpenAI Is Adding Two Independent Board Members Ahead of IPO
OpenAI is adding David Vélez, founder and global chief executive of Nubank, a Latin American digital services firm, and Robin Vince, the chief executive of Bank of New York Mellon, to its board of directors, the company said.
The appointments will expand OpenAI's board, bringing on two seasoned public-market executives who are well-known names in the financial world, as the company moves toward a public listing that could come as soon as later this year. Vince will chair the audit committee, OpenAI said.
The company has worked to improve its corporate governance after a previous set of directors abruptly fired Chief Executive Sam Altman three years ago for what they described as a lack of candor in his communications, throwing the company into disarray.
Expected Major Events for Wednesday
01:00/AUS: Jun Vacancy Report
01:00/AUS: May Westpac-Melbourne Institute Indexes of Economic Activity
03:00/NZ: Jun Credit card statistics
05:00/JPN: Jun Steel Production
05:00/JPN: Jun Supermarket sales
06:30/INA: Jul Bank Indonesia Board of Governors meeting and decision
07:00/MAL: Jul International Reserves, middle of month
08:00/TAI: Jun Employment / Unemployment
09:59/CHN: Jun FDI Foreign Direct Investment
23:00/SKA: 2Q Advance GDP
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This article is a text version of a Wall Street Journal newsletter published earlier today.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
July 21, 2026 16:49 ET (20:49 GMT)
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