Wall Street closed unevenly on Tuesday as sharp declines in SpaceX and other megacap technology stocks outweighed progress in U.S.-Iran negotiations.
The Dow finished higher, supported by healthcare and industrial shares. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq declined as investors questioned expensive technology valuations and prepared for another week of inflation and earnings tests.
What Moved
Tuesday, June 23
The Dow rose 0.29%.
The S&P 500 fell 0.37%.
The Nasdaq dropped 1.32%.
SpaceX plunged 16.4% in its largest one-day decline since going public.
Alphabet fell 5%.
Meta, Amazon, and Microsoft declined between 2.3% and 4.7%.
Seven of the S&P 500’s 11 sectors finished higher.
Oil prices fell as the United States and Iran agreed on a 60-day roadmap toward a final agreement.
The 7-Point Check That Saves Bad Trades
Most traders wreck their accounts the same way: They skip a step they already knew to take.
So I put the 7 that matter most on one page. Run it before any options trade — about 30 seconds — and you'll catch the bad ones before they cost you.
The Smart Trade Options Checklist. Normally $29.97. Free today.
Why It Moved
The main pressure came from technology. SpaceX suffered its steepest decline since its IPO and weighed heavily on the Nasdaq, although the stock remained above its $135 offering price.
The company also launched its first debt offering and reported about $100.8 billion in cash and cash equivalents as of June 19. The financing activity arrived as investors were already reassessing the valuation and volatility surrounding the newly public company.
Alphabet led a broader retreat among established megacap technology names. Meta, Amazon, and Microsoft also fell as investors continued questioning whether the scale of artificial intelligence infrastructure spending will generate returns quickly enough to support elevated valuations.
The selling was concentrated rather than fully market-wide. Real estate and energy led seven advancing S&P 500 sectors, while healthcare and industrial stocks helped lift the Dow. That split showed that investors were rotating away from expensive technology rather than abandoning equities across the board.
Iran negotiations offered some relief. U.S. and Iranian officials reported progress during talks in Switzerland and agreed on a roadmap toward a final deal within 60 days. Oil prices declined, lowering one source of pressure on consumers and businesses.
The diplomatic picture remained incomplete. Tensions involving Lebanon and the Strait of Hormuz continued, preventing markets from treating the negotiations as a finished agreement.
Your creative brief is due Friday. Viktor wrote it Tuesday.
Tell him the campaign. Viktor pulls last quarter's performance from Meta and TikTok, scrapes competitor ads, drafts the brief, posts it for review. You edit, he ships the creative requests to your designer. Inside Slack.
Why It Matters Now
Several short-term signals emerged:
Megacap technology weakness can overwhelm strength in the broader market.
SpaceX has become a major source of Nasdaq volatility.
Investors are questioning whether AI spending can justify current valuations.
Lower oil prices may ease inflation pressure if Iran talks continue progressing.
The market is rotating rather than selling off uniformly.
Federal Reserve policy remains a separate constraint on growth stocks.
The Federal Reserve added pressure to the setup. Chair Kevin Warsh’s recent focus on returning inflation to target lifted Treasury yields and reinforced expectations for tighter policy. Markets were pricing a quarter-point rate increase in September.
Thursday’s Personal Consumption Expenditures report will be the next major inflation test. A stronger reading could support the Fed’s restrictive stance and place additional pressure on highly valued technology shares.
Micron’s quarterly results on Wednesday will provide another immediate check on the AI trade. The stock has risen nearly 300 percent this year, making its earnings and outlook relevant well beyond the company itself.
In the immediate window ahead, market direction will depend on whether technology selling spreads into other sectors. Continued progress with Iran could lower energy risk and support the broader economy. Another round of weakness in SpaceX, megacaps, or chip stocks could keep the Nasdaq under pressure even if most sectors remain stable.
