Wall Street ends mixed as chip rally lifts Nasdaq and S&P 500, Dow slips amid midterm election uncertainty

U.S. stock indexes finished the day with divergent moves. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 169 points, or 0.3%, to 51,815, while the S&P 500 rose 33 points, or 0.4%, to 7,574 and the Nasdaq Composite gained 223 points, or 0.9%, to 25,388. The gains were driven by a rally in semiconductor stocks, which helped lift technology-heavy indexes.

Apple shares fell 1.9% after the company issued a weaker-than-expected gross-margin outlook for the upcoming quarter, citing higher memory-chip costs as a headwind despite solid iPhone revenue. Analysts noted that the mixed earnings guidance raised questions about the sustainability of Apple’s valuation.

Investors also kept a close watch on the 2026 U.S. midterm elections, with potential policy shifts in healthcare, housing and technology adding to market uncertainty. Attention now turns to after-hours earnings reports from companies such as Advanced Micro Devices, Block and Super Micro Computer.

In Europe, the FTSE 100 slipped 1.1% to 10,638 as oil prices fell following comments from President Donald Trump about ending U.S. financial support for Israel. Brent crude briefly dropped below $95 a barrel before recovering.

"Hopes for diplomacy also improved after Iran signalled greater willingness to discuss previously non-negotiable issues but there remains a chasm between U.S. and Iranian positions," said Axel Rudolph of IG.

Other market highlights included a 23% rise in Roku’s third-quarter advertising revenue to $727 million, Onsemi beating earnings expectations and forecasting fourth-quarter earnings above Wall Street estimates, and Shopify reporting strong revenue growth but missing forecasts for gross merchandise volume and subscription revenue.

The mixed performance reflects ongoing macro-economic uncertainty, election-related risk, and sector-specific drivers such as semiconductor demand and corporate earnings.