SPX: S&P 500 Tumbles to Start the Week. Equity Futures Rise Amid Renewed Optimism

Traders weren’t too hungry for risk assets Monday. But Tuesday’s a different ball game. At least in premarket.

📉 Rough Start, Better Outlook

• Wall Street began the week on the back foot, though the damage was more of a stumble than a pullback.
• The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 307 points, the S&P 500 slipped 0.2%, and the Nasdaq Composite edged 0.1% lower as traders balanced geopolitics against bargain hunting.
• Oil briefly topped $90 a barrel after renewed US-Iran tensions before easing later in the session.
• Under the surface, the mood wasn't entirely gloomy. Last week's biggest losers suddenly found buyers, suggesting investors weren't abandoning the AI story — just taking a breather after a sharp round of profit-taking.

💾 Chips Bounce Back

• Semiconductor names staged a respectable comeback after last week’s bruising selloff. Micron, Sandisk, and Seagate ranked among Monday's top performers, proving that sometimes yesterday's panic becomes today's bargain bin.
• The rebound spilled into Asia. South Korea's Kospi jumped 4% Tuesday, powered by heavyweight chipmakers Samsung Electronics, up 7%, and SK Hynix, which climbed 5.5% as investors returned to AI-linked names.
• The move highlighted just how volatile chip stocks have become. Or stocks in general. The old definitions of 10% for a correction and 20% for a bear market? Maybe we need to update those.

🚀 Futures Find Their Footing

• US equity futures pointed higher early Tuesday. Dow futures gained roughly 0.4%, S&P 500 futures rose 0.5%, and Nasdaq futures outperformed with a 1.2% advance as optimism over a potential ceasefire lifted risk appetite.
• With the economic calendar looking unusually quiet and Federal Reserve officials entering their pre-meeting blackout period (rate decision comes next Wednesday), macro headlines are taking a back seat.
• That leaves earnings firmly in the spotlight. Alphabet, Tesla and IBM report Wednesday, followed by Intel and American Airlines on Thursday.