Wall Street diverges Tuesday, industrials advance, techs slip

NEW YORK, New York - Industrial stocks zoomed high on Tuesday, while the tech sector lagged, although AI stocks firmed after recent sell-offs. "For much of this year, the market has been willing to look through higher rates because the growth story, notably that around AI, was strong enough to justify it. Last week, we saw that relationship begin to be tested," Jake Behan, head of capital markets at Direxion told CNBC Tuesday. "Hyperscalers report over the next few weeks, setting up the next major stress test for the AI trade," he said. "Guidance around ROI, data centre spending and 2027 capex will arguably be more important than the headline earnings figures." The Standard and Poor's 500 closed at 7,712.75, up 22.02 points or 0.29 percent, on volume of 2.565 billion. The index traded between a low of 7,668.03 and a high of 7,748.42 on the day. The Dow Jones Industrial Average led the advance, climbing 531.39 points or 1.02 percent to finish at 52,497.42 on volume of 349.028 million. The blue-chip gauge ranged from 51,910.92 to 52,689.81 during the session. The NASDAQ Composite bucked the trend, slipping 6.07 points or 0.02 percent to close at 26,424.82, with volume of 5.967 billion. The tech-heavy index traded between 26,179.74 and 26,601.72. Tuesday's session left the Dow comfortably ahead of its fellow U.S. benchmarks, while the Nasdaq's marginal decline underscored the divergence between industrial strength and technology-sector softness. U.S. Dollar Softens Tuesday as Major Currencies Gain Ground The U.S. dollar weakened against a basket of major currencies on Tuesday, with all tracked currency pairs showing gains for the non-dollar side of the trade. The euro rose against the greenback, with EUR-USD climbing 0.21 percent to 1.1236. The Japanese yen also strengthened, as USD-JPY slipped 0.18 percent to 158.22. Sterling posted the largest move of the session, with GBP-USD advancing 0.57 percent to 1.3381. The Australian dollar gained 0.30 percent against the dollar, with AUD-USD at 0.7001. The Canadian dollar firmed, with USD-CAD down 0.35 percent to 1.4061. The Swiss franc also strengthened, as USD-CHF fell 0.25 percent to 0.8247. Tuesday's moves reflected broad-based softness in the dollar, with every pair in the group finishing in favour of the counterpart currency. Global Stocks Mixed Tuesday as Canadian equities advance, UK and European Benchmarks Slip, Asian Markets Diverge World stock markets closed Tuesday's session with a mixed picture, as major European indices drifted lower while Asian bourses split sharply between gainers and losers. In Canada, the S&P/TSX Composite index added 179.33 points or 0.50 percent to close at 36,107.96 on volume of 231.542 million, after ranging from 35,805.03 to 36,222.11. In London, the FTSE 100 closed at 10,733.00, down 31.69 points or 0.29 percent. The index traded between a low of 10,673.02 and a high of 10,767.96 on the day. On the continent, Germany's DAX P finished at 25,304.42, shedding 15.35 points or 0.06 percent, after ranging from 25,050.11 to 25,407.14. France's CAC 40 fell to 7,838.49, a decline of 29.56 points or 0.38 percent, within a session range of 7,783.22 to 7,871.32. The EURO STOXX 50 I ended at 6,121.66, down 23.15 points or 0.38 percent, having traded between 6,070.22 and 6,151.17. The Euronext 100 Index closed at 1,852.82, off 8.83 points or 0.47 percent. Belgium's BEL 20, bucked the trend to close at 5,620.43, up 86.21 points or 1.56 percent, with a session range of 5,518.22 to 5,632.60. In Asia, Hong Kong's HANG SENG INDEX dropped to 23,867.74, down 319.09 points or 1.32 percent. In Singapore Tuesday, the STI Index slipped to 5,404.02, a loss of 7.98 points or 0.15 percent. In mainland China, the SSE Composite Index added 4.45 points or 0.12 percent to finish at 3,735.37 on turnover of 2.215 billion. Japan's Nikkei 225 closed at 64,075.42, down 841.28 points or 1.30 percent, after trading between 63,807.15 and 64,822.22. Down Under, the Australian S&P/ASX 200 [XJO] closed at 8,816.90, down 28.80 points or 0.33 per cent, while the broader ALL ORDINARIES [XAO] fell to 8,944.20, down 31.50 points or 0.35 per cent. Across the Tasman, New Zealand's S&P/NZX 50 INDEX GROSS edged down to 13,631.69, off 20.38 points or 0.15 percent. In India, the S&P BSE SENSEX declined to 73,852.90, a drop of 876.38 points or 1.17 percent, trading between 73,708.54 and 74,849.75. In Indonesia, the IDX COMPOSITE was the standout gainer, surging to 5,278.89, up 282.28 points or 5.65 percent. Malaysia's FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI added 3.83 points or 0.24 percent to close at 1,599.58. South Korea's KOSPI Composite Index suffered the steepest decline, plunging to 5,552.74, down 215.27 points or 3.73 percent. Taiwan's TSEC CAPITALIZATION WEIGHTED ST fell on Tuesday to 46,292.93, down 529.15 points or 1.13 percent. In the Middle East, Israel's TA-125 rose to 4,091.46, up 19.35 points or 0.48 percent. In Egypt, the EGX 30 Price Return Index climbed to 52,089.00, up 990.20 points or 1.94 percent on volume of 220.951 million. In Africa, the South African Top 40 USD Net TRI Index gained 111.56 points or 1.68 per cent to close at 6,733.40. (This report incorporates quotes retrieved with the assistance of artificial intelligence). Friday 16 October 2026 | Nasdaq plunges 573 points as oil prices shoot higher | Big News Network Thursday 15 October 2026 | Dow Jones surges 556 points Thursday despite shock PPI spike