The NASDAQ Composite rose on Tuesday as investors moved back into key technology stocks after recent pressure and geared up for the U.S. midterm elections.
The Dow Jones Industrial index sank 194.41 points to 51,789.57.
The S&P 500 index gained 30.92 points to 7,572.32.
The tech-heavy NASDAQ jumped 206.04 points, to 25,370.41.
Apple fell 2% after the consumer tech giant rolled out a disappointing margin forecast and iPad sales in the fiscal fourth quarter missed the Street’s estimates.
Conversely, shares of chipmakers saw gains. Advanced Micro Devices advanced 4%, while Broadcom rose more than 3%. Micron Technology, Nvidia and Intel each gained nearly 3%.
Investors are also focusing their attention on the midterm elections on Tuesday, where prediction market traders see a nearly 75% likelihood of Democrats taking the Senate.
A sweep of the House and Senate by Democrats could weigh on the broader market on Wednesday — and spark a selloff in artificial intelligence stocks especially — as investors have not firmly positioned for that outcome. If Republicans retain control of the Senate or both chambers, however, the market may see gains in the short term.
Even with President Donald Trump in the White House, a victory by Democrats in either the House or Senate could shape investigations and oversight in Washington — which is key for industries like defense, AI and healthcare.
Prices for the 10-year Treasury gained ground, lowering yields to 4.95% from Monday’s 4.91%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices picked up nine cents to $95.88 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices sank $28.90 to $3,940.70 U.S. an ounce.
