Nasdaq almost unchanged on Tuesday as early chip-stock rally fades

• Chip stocks showed mixed performance: Nvidia closed up 0.48% and Micron up 1.21%, well below their opening gains of 1.35% and 1.85% respectively, while AMD and Intel strengthened throughout the session
• August job openings came in at 7.079 million, missing analyst expectations of 7.23 million, as markets await Friday's nonfarm payrolls data ahead of the Fed's October meeting
• Traders are pricing in a more than 72% probability of another Fed rate hike in October, with the CBOE Volatility Index falling 1.87% to 15.77 as geopolitical tensions from Iran-related oil disruptions eased

Market Summary

Market Performance:

The Nasdaq Composite closed nearly flat on Tuesday, up just 0.04% to 26,831.94, while the Dow Jones fell 0.07% to 51,446.51 and the S&P 500 gained 0.13% to 7,694.21. The session followed Monday's selloff triggered by rising oil prices and Treasury yields after President Trump rejected Iran's Strait of Hormuz proposal.

Key Development:

Anthropic announced plans for $518 billion in AI infrastructure spending, initially driving semiconductor stocks higher before early gains faded. The CBOE Volatility Index declined 1.87% to 15.77, indicating reduced market anxiety.

Chip Stock Movement:

Nvidia rose 0.48% to $229.96 after opening up 1.35%, while Micron's gain cooled to 1.21% at $1,066.70. AMD extended gains to 0.99% at $613.88, and Intel turned positive at 0.18%. Broadcom surged 2.74% to $359.16, while Bloom Energy jumped 9.77% to $288.54.

Notable Decliners:

Apple fell 1.54% to $333.20 and Tesla dropped 1.36% to $352.61, suggesting rotation away from consumer-facing mega-caps toward AI infrastructure plays.

Political Focus:

President Trump scheduled a Tuesday White House lunch with AI executives including Mark Zuckerberg, Dario Amodei, Jensen Huang, and Sundar Pichai to discuss balancing innovation with regulatory oversight.

Economic Outlook:

August JOLTS data showed 7.079 million job openings, below the 7.23 million forecast. Investors await core PCE, Q2 GDP, ADP payrolls, and Friday's nonfarm payrolls report ahead of the Fed's October meeting, where traders price in a 72% probability of another rate hike.