Thursday, October 22, 2026

Wall Street saw a stark divergence on Thursday as tech stocks cratered, dragging the Nasdaq down 2.60% to 26,008.86 and the S&P 500 lower by 1.21% to 7,663.43. Meanwhile, blue chips and small caps held the line, with the Dow Jones inching up 0.02% to 52,867.98 and the Russell 2000 adding 0.11% to 2,784.026. Fear crept back into the market, pushing the VIX up 14.09% to 19.03, even as robust jobless claims hitting a 2022 low (197,750) painted a resilient underlying economic picture.

Sectors in focus:

• Semiconductors & AI: A brutal selloff slammed tech hardware, with Printed Circuit Boards (-10.59%) and Semiconductors (-6.94%) leading the market's laggards. Lam Research plummeted 11.8% after warning that cleanroom constraints will limit output through 2027, dragging down AMD (-8%) and KLA Corp (-10%). Meta also dropped 8% as its staggering $825B in future spending commitments triggered AI financing fears.
• Energy: WTI Crude surged 2.03% to 99.12 amid escalating Middle East tensions and reports of potential post-election strikes against Iran.
• Biotech: Moderna plummeted 17.6% after a leak of underwhelming Phase 3 melanoma vaccine results disappointed investors.
• Defensives & Construction: Capital rotated into Services-Help Supply (+6.50%), Residential Building Contractors (+5.13%), and Grocery Stores (+5.09%). Oddly, Gold offered no safe haven, falling 2.68% to 4,038.6.

On the radar:

• Oct 24: Moderna (MRNA) will attempt to manage the fallout during its full Phase 3 presentation at ESMO.
• Oct 27–29: A heavy macro slate features October Consumer Confidence, the Q3 GDP Advance Estimate (2.2% expected), and the crucial September PCE Price Index.
• Oct 28: Big Tech Q3 earnings arrive, with Alphabet and Microsoft in the hot seat to prove AI ROI.
• Nov 3: US Midterm Elections bring looming political gridlock and policy risks.