Wall Street’s record run stumbles as oil jumps and AI chip stocks slide

Wall Street’s record run stuttered Tuesday, with investors sending broad indexes lower as attention shifted from recent gains to a mix of higher energy prices, bond-market jitters, and early weakness in technology-related stocks. The S&P 500 fell 0.2% from the all-time high it hit the prior day, and the Nasdaq composite slid 0.7% from its own record, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.1% after adding 56 points.

The pullback for technology was tied to losses in AI-linked chip names, extending a drop that began earlier in Asia. In South Korea, the Kospi index sank 2.3% from its all-time high, with worries centered on the government possibly redirecting windfall AI profits from companies to citizens, according to the report. Back in the U.S., Intel fell 6.8% after its shares had more than tripled for the year to date, and Micron Technology dropped 3.6% after a near-180% gain for 2026 through the start of the day.

Other AI-related stocks also slid. CoreWeave sank 6.1% after it came into Tuesday with a 60% gain for 2026, the report said. Overall, the day’s technology-heavy weakness helped mark a reversal in a market that had been rising to records, MSI previously reported as oil conditions and earnings helped fuel the advance.

Oil strengthened further as investors priced in the risk from the war with Iran. The price for a barrel of Brent crude climbed 3.4% to settle at $107.77, the report said, describing the ceasefire as fragile and noting the conflict had effectively shut the Strait of Hormuz to oil tankers. With ships stuck in the Persian Gulf instead of delivering crude worldwide, analysts and traders pointed to the supply disruption as a factor pushing crude higher.

The oil jump fed into broader inflation concerns for the U.S. economy, according to the report. It said a Tuesday-released analysis indicated inflation worsened last month by more than economists expected, and that price increases accelerated by more in April than economists anticipated even after excluding gasoline and food costs. The report also said that tariffs and bad weather could be contributing factors, citing Brian Jacobsen, chief economic strategist at Annex Wealth Management.

Bond markets reflected the same worry about rates. Treasury yields rose in the bond market following an initial “zigzag,” suggesting traders suspected the Federal Reserve would keep interest rates high to combat inflation, the report said. It added that the Fed has kept its cuts on hold recently as policymakers watch how high inflation may go because of the war with Iran and tariffs introduced by President Donald Trump, and it noted that lower rates can worsen inflation even as they can boost the economy.

Against that backdrop, the report highlighted the 10-year Treasury’s level, saying it rose to 4.45% from 4.42% late Monday. It also cited CME Group data that traders were betting on a better than 1-in-3 chance the Fed could hike rates by December. Higher rates typically pressure stock valuations, the report said, even as some investors remained focused on company earnings results.

Corporate results still offered support for the broader market’s recent resilience, the report said, noting that companies were producing bigger profits than analysts expected. Zebra Technologies topped analysts’ expectations for earnings and the company’s stock rose 11.4%, while it also issued a full-year profit forecast that beat what analysts expected, according to the report. Under Armour fell 17% after reporting a worse loss for the latest quarter than analysts expected, and GameStop slid 3.5% after eBay rejected a buyout offer, describing it as “neither credible nor attractive.”

Other deal-related moves also weighed on the S&P 500. Beazer Homes USA fell 7.3% after likewise rejecting an unsolicited buyout offer, with the report saying it attributed undervaluing to Dream Finders Homes in its attempts to buy the homebuilder, including in its latest bid. Dream Finders dropped 13.4% in the report’s account, as the session’s index totals were tallied: the S&P 500 fell 11.88 points to 7,400.96, the Dow added 56.09 to 49,760.56, and the Nasdaq composite sank 185.92 to 26,088.20.

Outside the U.S., indexes mostly fell, with losses across parts of Europe and Asia. The report cited declines of 1.6% for Germany’s DAX and 0.9% for France’s CAC 40, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 gained 0.5%. ___ AP Business Writers Yuri Kageyama and Matt Ott contributed to this report.