U.S. stocks wobble as tech and AI shares fluctuate amid lower oil prices

U.S. equity markets showed mixed performance on Monday after an early rally faded. The S&P 500 finished virtually unchanged after erasing a gain that had reached 1.1% earlier in the session. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 403 points, or 0.8%, while the Nasdaq Composite slipped 0.3%.

Most Wall Street stocks posted gains, helped by a 7.6% decline in Brent crude to $104.77 a barrel, reflecting ongoing uncertainty about the timeline for normalcy in the oil market following the conflict with Iran.

Technology and artificial-intelligence shares remained volatile. Alphabet, Google’s parent company, saw its stock rise 2.6% before trimming gains to a modest 1% increase, after reporting a larger-than-expected cash burn and slower growth in its core search business. Nvidia’s shares moved from a 2.6% rise to a 0.3% decline after a 4.2% drop on Friday. Apple, the largest component of the S&P 500, fell 1.7% ahead of its earnings release scheduled after market close.

Marvell Technology dropped 13.9% after announcing a share-exchange acquisition of Lumentum, whose own shares fell 17.7% on the news.

Outside the tech sector, several companies posted notable gains. United Airlines rose 5%, Southwest Airlines 3.6%, and Carnival Corp. 3.8%, all benefiting from lower fuel costs. Marriott International gained 4.2% after reporting stronger hotel performance worldwide; CEO Anthony Capuano said, "trends improved meaningfully" since the spring.

Idexx Laboratories surged 21.7% after beating profit and revenue expectations and raising its full-year 2026 forecasts.

A manufacturing survey showed U.S. output growth exceeding expectations, and a price-growth index indicated slower inflation. European markets rose, while Asian indexes showed larger moves, with South Korea’s Kospi up 2.2% and Chinese markets gaining modestly. The People’s Bank of China announced a new program to inject roughly 100 billion yuan ($15 billion) to support its market.