NEW YORK (dpa-AFX) — US stocks opened lower on Tuesday after a long weekend, weighed by further-rising oil prices that stoked fears of additional central-bank rate hikes. The European Central Bank is widely expected to raise interest rates again on Thursday.
The value-heavy Dow Jones Industrial fell about 1% to 52,885 points with two hours remaining, while the broad S&P 500 dropped 0.4% to 7,690. The technology-focused Nasdaq 100 managed a modest 0.1% gain to 29,578, though the advance was tempered by declines in major holdings Apple, Nvidia and Microsoft.
"Given a week rich in market-moving events, risk appetite remains dampened," said one trader, pointing to the ECB decision and US inflation data due Friday. Tensions in the Middle East continued to dominate headlines and weigh on sentiment.
Chipmakers led gains in the AI space. AMD, ARM and Broadcom each rose as much as 6%, with traders attributing the follow-through to Friday's rally sparked by OpenAI's announcement of a more powerful AI model.
Intel shares surged nearly 10% after the magazine DigiTimes reported the processor maker would likely raise prices, bolstered by an analyst upgrade from Northland Securities. Qualcomm climbed 3% following a disclosure that it is partnering with Amazon to supply custom data-center chips, a deal that also includes stock-purchase options.
Quantum-computing stocks attracted attention as well. D-Wave Quantum, Rigetti Computing and Quantinuum each announced they will receive $100 million from the US Department of Commerce to expand quantum-computing research.
Oil companies including Chevron, ExxonMobil and ConocoPhillips benefited as Brent crude for November delivery approached the $100-a-barrel mark. The advance followed Houthi militia attacks on Saudi Arabia, which forced the Gulf region's largest producer to halt output at several facilities near the Yemen border.
Pharma was subdued. Dyne Therapeutics fell 15% after Swiss giant Novartis reported a second study failure with its drug candidates, including Del-desiran for the muscle disease myotonic dystrophy, following the earlier disappointment with cardiovascular drug Pelacarsen.
Meanwhile, a growing energy shortage tied to AI infrastructure is drawing investor focus. Modern AI data centers require multiple gigawatts of power — comparable to several nuclear reactor blocks — triggering a global scramble for electricity. Hyperscalers are securing vast energy quantities through long-term contracts, but grid expansion and generation capacity struggle to keep pace. Geopolitical risks around the Iran conflict and the Strait of Hormus have further tightened supplies, prompting analysis that energy companies could enter a "golden age" driven by rising demand, long-term off-take agreements and climbing power prices.
