Nasdaq Composite Has a Rough Morning; Dow Holds Up Better (Barely)

Tuesday morning wasn't exactly kind to stock investors, but there's no need to panic.

All three major indexes spent the session underwater, with the Nasdaq Composite (NASDAQINDEX: ^IXIC) taking the hardest punch. As of around 12:43 p.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJINDICES: ^DJI) was down 0.31%, the S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC) had slipped 0.51%, and the Nasdaq was nursing a 0.86% loss after twice dipping more than1.4% between 10 ET and 11 ET.

The Nasdaq suffered the steepest losses, plunging sharply in the first hour of trading before staging a choppy rebound. All three indexes ticked higher in unison after noon ET.

^DJI data by YCharts

Why stocks are struggling

Rising bond yields dominated Wall Street's conversation.

The 30-year Treasury Bond yield climbed to 5.19%, its highest level since before the 2008 financial crisis. Higher long-term rates increase borrowing costs for corporations and reduce the present value of future earnings, a combo that hits growth-oriented technology stocks especially hard.

That math showed up in the biggest point-shaving losers of each market index. Alphabet (NASDAQ: GOOG) (NASDAQ: GOOGL) dropped about 2% by midday, while Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) fell around 3%. These trillion-dollar behemoths were the largest drags on both the Nasdaq and the S&P 500. When you're worth trillions, even a 2% dip moves the needle.

Amazon's 3% slide also led the Dow lower, along with a 1% drop for Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS). Goldman carries the heaviest price weight in the Dow, so a normal day of random market noise is often enough to make it the Dow's leading needle-mover.

Image source: Getty Images.

Here's the frustrating part for Alphabet shareholders: the company actually had good news today. It announced a $5 billion joint venture with Blackstone (NYSE: BX) to build out AI cloud infrastructure using Google's custom chips.

Headlines like that usually get tech investors excited. But when the 30-year yield is screaming toward levels not seen since the Bush administration, even a multibillion-dollar vote of confidence from a private equity titan can't stop the bleeding.

Then there's the situation in the Strait of Hormuz.

Iran warned it could "open new fronts" against the United States. Foreign governments such as Japan and China have been reducing their holdings of U.S. Treasuries amid Iran-related currency concerns. The critical Strait of Hormuz is still blocked and oil prices rose by 2% today. None of this is good news for the market indexes.

Keep calm and zoom out

If this feels familiar, it should. Markets have been caught between rising rates and geopolitical flare-ups for months now, and Tuesday is just the latest chapter.

So I should remind you not to panic, as usual.

The Nasdaq swung from down 1.4% to down 0.86% in about an hour; that's sentiment, not fundamentals. The world didn't change. Alphabet and Amazon are the same companies they were yesterday, just temporarily on sale (and not a particularly generous one, at that).

Stay cool. Stay patient. It's just another day on Wall Street in 2026.

Anders Bylund has positions in Alphabet and Amazon. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Alphabet, Amazon, Blackstone, and Goldman Sachs Group. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.