Hey everyone, Hirokichi here.
Today I’m recapping the U.S. stock market on Monday, August 24, 2026. It was a split session: the Dow edged higher while the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite slipped, dragged down by weakness in chip stocks. Geopolitical risk from new Iran sanctions and a breakdown in U.S.-Canada trade talks added to the cautious mood. Since this matters for anyone holding U.S. stocks or U.S. ETFs, let’s go through it step by step. This week also brings Nvidia’s earnings and the Jackson Hole symposium, so getting a handle on today’s move should make the coming headlines easier to follow.
Index recap: Dow inches up, Nasdaq falls 0.80%
Here’s how the three major indexes closed.
・Dow Jones Industrial Average: 53,441.18 (+164.17, +0.31%)
・S&P 500: 7,652.36 (-22.01, -0.29%)
・Nasdaq Composite: 25,971.85 (-208.61, -0.80%)
As the chart below shows, the Dow was the only one of the three to finish in positive territory.
What this chart tells us is really about the makeup of each index. The Dow leans toward cyclical and defensive names (stocks whose earnings tend to hold up even in a downturn), while the Nasdaq is heavily weighted toward tech and semiconductor stocks. This looked like a classic rotation out of tech and into cheaper blue chips, which is exactly why the indexes moved in opposite directions. If you’re holding index funds or ETFs tracking the S&P 500 or Nasdaq, your balance probably dipped a little today — but this kind of divergence between indexes happens all the time, so it’s best not to read too much into a single day’s move.
Chips take the spotlight: Nvidia falls for a 7th straight session
The main culprit behind today’s weakness was, once again, semiconductor stocks. Nvidia (NVDA), the poster child of the AI (artificial intelligence) trade, fell 2.9% — its seventh consecutive losing session. With earnings due Wednesday, August 26, it makes sense that we’d see some profit-taking and position adjustments ahead of the report.
Memory-chip names such as Micron and Sandisk also sold off sharply. The trigger appears to be news that a Chinese company has filed for an IPO (initial public offering), raising concerns about new competition down the road. At the same time, tight supply in parts of the chip market means some customers could face price hikes of up to roughly 15%. For chipmakers themselves, higher prices could be a tailwind for earnings, but for the PC and smartphone makers that buy those chips, it’s a potential cost headwind. It helps to think about who benefits and who pays whenever a headline like this hits — that’s usually the key to understanding why a stock moves the way it does.
Personally, I think we’re due for some give-back after AI stocks have rallied for months. Price swings tend to get choppy right before earnings, so if you’re holding Nvidia, I’d avoid reacting to every daily move and instead wait to see what the actual earnings report says. Given how much influence Nvidia has over the Nasdaq as a whole, how the stock reacts to earnings could set the tone for the rest of the week.
Iran sanctions and U.S.-Canada tariffs add to the pressure
Chip-market dynamics weren’t the only thing weighing on stocks. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent was expected to unveil details of new sanctions against Iran, with President Trump reportedly describing the move as an “economic D-Day” — language strong enough to unsettle investor sentiment on its own.
On top of that, news broke that U.S.-Canada trade talks had collapsed, with Canada signaling retaliatory tariffs. Tariff (a tax on imported goods) uncertainty has been simmering since last year, and today it flared back up. With geopolitical risk and trade friction both in focus at once, it’s easy to see why investors were reluctant to take on risk. Headlines like these tend to move sentiment before they show up in hard numbers, so it’s worth keeping an eye on how they get priced in as more details emerge.
Flight to quality: money rotates into defensive stocks and gold
That risk-off mood showed up clearly in where the money went. Defensive stocks such as defense names (companies whose earnings tend to be less sensitive to the economic cycle) attracted inflows, and gold — the classic safe-haven asset — also rose, closing 0.76% higher at $4,650.64 per troy ounce.
It looks like money moved from “offense” to “defense” within equities, and then out of equities entirely into gold. Tracking these flows is a simple way to gauge the market’s mood at any given moment. The gold rally is also a good reminder of why it can make sense to keep a small allocation outside of NISA or U.S. ETF holdings, rather than putting everything into stocks alone.
What to watch this week: Nvidia earnings and Jackson Hole
Several events this week could set the tone for where the market heads next. Here’s what I’m watching.
(1) Nvidia’s earnings (Wednesday, August 26): This is the single biggest catalyst for AI-stock sentiment. Beyond the headline revenue and profit numbers, commentary on demand for generative-AI chips will likely be the focus.
(2) Earnings from Intuit, Salesforce, and Marvell Technology: These will offer more clues on how software and semiconductor businesses are performing.
(3) The Jackson Hole symposium (kicks off Thursday): This annual gathering is always closely watched for hints on monetary policy. Fed Chair Kevin Warsh’s speech on Friday will be in focus for any signals on the pace of rate cuts going forward.
Depending on how these events play out, we could see bigger swings later this week. If you’re holding positions, it’s worth thinking ahead about how you’d manage the risk of holding through earnings and major events. If you’re a regular contributor to an index fund, my personal approach is to keep dollar-cost averaging on schedule rather than trying to time the market around these headlines.
Wrap-up
On August 24, 2026, U.S. markets told two different stories: the Dow held its ground with a modest gain, while chip weakness dragged the Nasdaq and S&P 500 into the red. Add in geopolitical risk from Iran sanctions and U.S.-Canada tariff tensions, and it’s easy to see why investors leaned cautious today. With Nvidia’s earnings and the Jackson Hole symposium both on deck this week, it should be an important stretch for reading where the market goes next. I’ll be keeping an eye on my own holdings and watching this week’s news calmly rather than reacting to every headline.
日本語版はこちら → https://hirokichiiii.com/投資のいろは/us-stock-2026-0824/
* This article is for informational purposes only and does not recommend any specific investment. Please make investment decisions at your own responsibility.
Let’s keep at it, slow and steady. See you next time!
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