Today’s Market Recap: AI Chip Stocks Plunge, Brent Crude Soars 10%, Gold Drops Below $4,000

Tracking Market Trends

TradingKey - On July 13, Eastern Time, the three major U.S. stock indexes collectively closed lower. Over the weekend, the U.S.-Iran conflict escalated again as Iran claimed it would close the Strait of Hormuz, while the U.S. announced the resumption of its shipping blockade on Iran, driving international oil prices sharply higher. Concerns over energy supply disruptions, a rebound in inflation, and the Federal Reserve resuming interest rate hikes rapidly heated up, with tech stocks and the semiconductor sector becoming the primary drags on U.S. stocks during the day.

At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.26% to 52,504.26 points; the S&P 500 Index declined 0.79% to 7,515.34 points; and the Nasdaq Composite Index fell 1.55% to 25,873.18 points.

In terms of sectors and individual stocks, the semiconductor sector led the declines. Nvidia ( NVDA) fell 3.52%, Micron Technology ( MU) fell 4.32%, AMD ( AMD) fell 4.21%, SanDisk ( SNDK) tumbled 12.63%, Marvell ( MRVL) fell 7.75%, Intel ( INTC) fell 6.12%. SK Hynix ( SKHV )'s U.S.-listed shares fell 9.32%, giving back some of the gains from its first-day surge last Friday.

In commodities, crude oil was the main focus of the day. WTI ( USOIL) crude oil closed up 9.08% at $77.99; Brent crude closed up 10.76% at $83.31. The core driver of the spike in oil prices was the resurgence of transit risks in the Strait of Hormuz. The strait is a critical gateway for global crude oil and liquefied natural gas transport, and once shipping is blocked, the market will quickly price back in supply disruption risks.

In precious metals, spot gold ( XAUUSD) fell 2.87% to $3,986.64; silver ( XAGUSD) fell 3.71% to $57.61. The spike in oil prices lifted inflation expectations, prompting investors to re-bet that the Fed may keep interest rates higher or even raise rates further, putting clear pressure on gold, a non-yielding asset.

Market News

Trump claims the US will take over the Strait of Hormuz, causing the crude oil risk premium to rise rapidly. US President Trump stated that the US plans to take control of the Strait of Hormuz, saying the US should be compensated for "guarding" this key energy corridor. As the Strait of Hormuz handles a large share of the world's crude oil and liquefied natural gas shipments, the remarks intensified market concerns about the US-Iran conflict spilling over into the energy shipping system.

Fed Chair Warsh's congressional hearing becomes this week's focus. Warsh will testify before Congress on Tuesday and Wednesday, marking his first semi-annual monetary policy hearing since becoming Fed Chair. As surging oil prices drive inflationary pressures higher again, the market will focus on whether Warsh hints that the Fed needs to maintain high interest rates or even reconsider rate hikes. Currently, the market has begun pricing in the possibility of at least one 25-basis-point rate hike this year.

US June CPI and PPI data are set to be released. This week, the US will release the June Consumer Price Index and Producer Price Index, which will serve as crucial data to determine whether the oil price shock is feeding through to inflation. If inflation exceeds expectations, the US dollar and Treasury yields may continue to strengthen, potentially putting more pressure on gold, tech stocks, and crypto assets; if inflation comes in below expectations, it could ease market concerns over Fed policy tightening.

US second-quarter earnings season officially kicks off. Major financial institutions including JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Citi, Goldman Sachs, and Wells Fargo will report earnings on Tuesday, with the market closely watching trading revenue, the recovery of investment banking, and corporate credit risk. With US stock valuations at elevated levels, this earnings season is highly significant for market direction, especially regarding whether companies can support the previous rally in AI and tech stocks through earnings growth.

Top 10 Most Active Stocks

The table below lists the ten most actively traded stocks in the market recently. Supported by massive trading volume and excellent liquidity, these assets have become key benchmarks for tracking global market dynamics.