Early Monday saw US stock markets retracting most of the significant gains recorded earlier in the week. Despite the overall pullback, the Dow managed to remain in the positive territory, closing 0.5 percent stronger at 52,210 points. However, the technology-focused Nasdaq did not follow suit; the 100 most important stocks fell by an average of 0.3 percent, ending at 28,039 points. The broader S&P 500 finished the day essentially flat, closing at 7,413 points-a negligible formal increase of 0.016 percent.
The primary factor weighing on the markets was renewed skepticism surrounding technology and semiconductor stocks. Specifically, companies closely tied to Artificial Intelligence (AI) have come under intensified scrutiny following months of strong price increases, and they frequently feature on sell lists. Investors are growing concerned about whether the lofty expectations and associated gains for AI investments can be justified in the short term. Market analysts view the technology sector as one of the critical components determining the direction of US stock exchanges in the coming trading days, noting that further declines in semiconductor stocks could trigger technical signals and add additional downward pressure.
In other areas, investors were paying close attention to energy prices, which showed some relief on Monday. The price for a barrel of North Sea Brent crude fell markedly to $87.73, a drop of 9.4 percent from Friday. This downward movement is attributed to a clear easing of the conflict with Iran. US President Donald Trump mentioned a “good chance” for a diplomatic resolution, while the US military had avoided attacks for several consecutive days.
Regarding foreign exchange, the Euro weakened slightly by Monday evening; one Euro bought $1.1371, while the dollar was worth 0.8794 Euros. Meanwhile, the price of gold managed a modest gain, reaching $4,083 per fine ounce (+0.8%) by the evening, which translates to €115.45 per gram.
