[BRIEFING.COM] The Dow Jones Industrial Average (+0.36%) is in last place among the major average on Tuesday afternoon, up about 189 points.

A look inside the DJIA shows that Caterpillar (CAT 1071.59, +38.40, +3.72%), Apple (AAPL 288.56, +6.82, +2.42%), and McDonald's (MCD 270.18, +3.00, +1.12%) are some of today's top gain getters.

Meanwhile, Procter & Gamble (PG 146.22, -2.23, -1.50%) is at the bottom of the average.

With a few hours left to go, the DJIA is poised to end +2.62% higher on the month.

[BRIEFING.COM] Another solid session for semiconductor stocks is helping push the S&P 500 (+0.7%), Nasdaq Composite (+1.3%), and DJIA (+0.3%) higher despite today's relatively light news flow and low trading volume.

Firm gains across major chipmakers such as Advanced Micro Devices (AMD 581.33, +41.84, +7.76%) and Intel (INTC 141.19, +9.47, +7.19%) have the PHLX Semiconductor Index (+3.5%) and the broader information technology sector (+2.2%) extending yesterday's advance. Mega-cap stocks outside of the semiconductor space are not as strong across the board as they were yesterday, but the Vanguard Mega Cap Growth ETF (+1.5%) has steadily ticked higher throughout the session.

Improvements across the group are helping the consumer discretionary (+0.4%) and communication services (+0.2%) sectors recover after spending most of the morning in negative territory.

Outside of the tech space, action is mixed. The S&P 500 Equal Weight Index sits on its flat line, market breadth is nearly even on both the NYSE and Nasdaq, and five of the 11 S&P 500 sectors trade higher.

The industrials sector (+0.9%) is another relative standout as its electrical equipment names continue to move in lockstep with semiconductor stocks, while the materials sector (+0.7%) bounces back from yesterday's weaker showing.

Meanwhile, the real estate sector (-1.4%) continues to be a laggard so far this week. Digital Realty Trust (DLR 182.03, -8.55, -4.49%) trades lower after agreeing to acquire a Blackstone (BX 115.94, +1.06, +0.92%) owned stake in three fully leased Northern Virginia data centers for $7.8 billion.

Elsewhere, the defensive consumer staples (-1.1%), health care (-1.0%), and utilities (-0.5%) sectors also lag for the second consecutive session as semiconductors and select mega-cap technology names outperform.

While today's session has been quieter from a corporate news perspective, it has featured a clear continuation of yesterday's return to mega-cap technology leadership. As a result, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite have reclaimed nearly all of last week's losses, while enough strength elsewhere in the market has kept the DJIA moving higher as well.

Reviewing today's data:

• April FHFA Housing Price Index -0.1% (Briefing.com consensus 0.2%); Prior was revised to 0.2% from 0.1%
• April S&P Case-Shiller Home Price Index 1.1% (Briefing.com consensus 0.9%); Prior was revised to 0.9% from 0.8%
• June Chicago PMI 56.7 (Briefing.com consensus 60.0); Prior 62.7
• June Consumer Confidence 91.2 (Briefing.com consensus 94.2); Prior was revised to 90.6 from 93.1
  • The key takeaway from the report is that the June increase followed a downward revision to May's reading, so there is some persistent caution in confidence as the expectations index remains below a level that has traditionally signaled an upcoming recession.
• May JOLTS - Job Opening 7.594 mln; Prior was revised to 7.585 mln from 7.618 mln

[BRIEFING.COM] The major averages remain at session highs just after midday.

Cleveland Fed President Beth Hammack (voting FOMC member) told CNBC that inflation has been high for five years, and if that trend continues, higher rates might be needed. The CME FedWatch tool shows rate hike probabilities through the end of the year have increased by a few percentage points today, but not enough to alter the market's expected timeline.

[BRIEFING.COM] The major averages are little changed from previous levels amid a relatively quiet session.

Similar to yesterday's action, the real estate sector (-1.5%) is a laggard, facing broad pressure across its components.

Additionally, Digital Realty Trust (DLR 180.43, -10.15, -5.33%) trades lower after announcing with Blackstone (BX 115.75, +0.87, +0.76%) that Digital Realty has agreed to purchase from Blackstone-affiliated funds managed by Real Estate, Infrastructure and Tactical Opportunities a stake in three fully leased data centers containing 288 megawatts of total IT capacity in Northern Virginia at a gross value of $7.8 billion, reflecting an expected initial stabilized capitalization rate of over 6.5%. Total consideration paid to Blackstone for its blended 64% equity interest in the assets will be $3.5 billion, including $1.2 billion of cash and $2.3 billion in shares of Digital Realty, based on the last reported sale price of the company's common stock on the New York Stock Exchange on June 29, 2026.

[BRIEFING.COM] The S&P 500 (+0.5%), Nasdaq Composite (+1.1%), and DJIA (+0.3%) trade near their best levels of the session just before midday as another strong showing from semiconductor names outweighs mixed strength in the broader market.

Four S&P 500 sectors trade higher, with the information technology sector (+1.8%) leading the advance. The PHLX Semiconductor Index is up 2.9%, expanding its early week-to-date gain to nearly 7%.

Electrical product names such as Vertiv (VRT 329.50, +22.53, +7.34%) are staying true to their recent trend of following semiconductors higher, which seats the industrials sector (+1.1%) with a nice gain as well. Gains are more modest elsewhere.

Strength is mixed across mega-cap names outside the semiconductor space, though the Vanguard Mega Cap Growth ETF (+1.3%) has steadily ticked higher throughout the session, pushing the major averages to their best levels as well.

Meanwhile, defensive-oriented sectors face an extension of yesterday's profit-taking after last week's rotational rally.

[BRIEFING.COM] The major averages continue to drift higher as tech gains overshadow weakness in the broader market.

AeroVironment (AVAV 159.82, +20.82, +14.98%) is soaring higher today after this supplier of drones and tactical missile systems delivered a blowout fiscal Q4 (Apr), snapping a string of three consecutive EPS misses with a decisive beat as revenue more than doubled year-over-year and comfortably exceeded expectations. While FY27 EPS guidance came in below consensus, investors are looking through the shortfall because it reflects higher non-cash depreciation and amortization tied to aggressive capacity investments rather than deteriorating operating fundamentals.

Meanwhile, Concentrix (CNXC 20.96, -4.27, -16.92%) is under heavy pressure following its Q2 (May) report last night. The company missed EPS expectations by a penny, marking its second consecutive miss, while revenue increased 1.9% year-pver-year to $2.46 billion, essentially in line. Guidance is likely driving the bulk of the disappointment, with Q3 EPS guidance of $2.65-2.77 and revenue guidance of $2.465-2.490 billion both well below consensus. CNXC also cut its FY26 outlook to EPS of $10.83-11.18 and revenue of $9.925-10.025 billion, down from its prior outlook of $11.48-12.07 and $10.035-10.180 billion, respectively.

[BRIEFING.COM] The S&P 500 (+0.5%), Nasdaq Composite (+1.0%), and DJIA (+0.3%) are improving from their opening gains as semiconductor names continue to move higher this morning.

The Conference Board's Consumer Confidence Index increased to 91.2 in June (Briefing.com consensus 94.2) from a revised 90.6 (from 93.1) in May. In the same period a year ago, the index stood at 95.2.

The key takeaway from the report is that the June increase followed a downward revision to May's reading, so there is some persistent caution in confidence as the expectations index remains below a level that has traditionally signaled an upcoming recession.

[BRIEFING.COM] The S&P 500 (+0.4%), Nasdaq Composite (+0.7%), and DJIA (+0.1%) trade modestly higher as semiconductor stocks see an extension of yesterday's gains while the broader market is mixed.

A 2.9% gain in the PHLX Semiconductor Index pushes the information technology sector (+1.6%) to the top of the leaderboard, with AI-infrastructure names such as Corning (GLW 269.06, +13.37, +5.23%) and Lam Research (LRCX 430.52, +19.61, +4.77%) once again among the top performers. The industrials sector (+0.6%) is once again a beneficiary of semiconductor gains, but it is the only other S&P 500 sector with a gain wider than 0.3%.

Meanwhile, the communication services (-1.0%) and consumer discretionary (-0.4%) sectors move lower as most "Magnificent Seven" names see some modest profit-taking after yesterday's rally, while more defensive-oriented sectors continue to lag.

On the data front, the Chicago PMI contracted to 56.7 in June (Briefing.com consensus 60.0), down from a prior level of 62.7.

The Conference Board's Consumer Confidence Index checked in at 91.2 in June (Briefing.com consensus: 94.2) from a downwardly revised 90.6 (from 93.1) in May.

The May Job Openings and Labor Turnover report (JOLTS) saw 7.594 million job openings in May, up/down from a downwardly revised 7.585 million in April (from 7.681 million).

Equity futures now point to a flattish open to kick off the final session of this year's first half.

Just released, the FHFA Housing Price Index dipped 0.1% in April (Briefing.com 0.2%) from an upwardly revised prior increase of 0.2% (from 0.1%).

The S&P Case-Shiller Home Price Index increased 1.1% in April (Briefing.com consensus 0.9%), from an upwardly revised prior increase of 0.9% (from 0.8%).

The S&P 500 futures currently trade eight points above fair value.

Equity indices in the Asia-Pacific region had a mixed showing on Tuesday. China's Manufacturing and Non-Manufacturing PMI readings for June reflected slight expansion, which was a touch better than expected. The dollar has continued climbing against the yen, sending the Japanese currency to its lowest level since late 1986. Japan's Finance Minister Katayama said that she won't comment on specific currency levels and that decisive action is an option for policymakers. China's electric vehicle exports for May were up 48% yr/yr.

• In economic data:
  • China's June Manufacturing PMI 50.3 (expected 50.1; last 50.0) and June Non-Manufacturing PMI 50.2 (expected 49.9; last 50.1)
  • Japan's May Industrial Production 0.5% m/m (expected 0.6%; last 0.5%), May jobs/applications ratio 1.17 (expected 1.18; last 1.18), and May Unemployment Rate 2.5%, as expected (last 2.5%). May Housing Starts 33.9% yr/yr (expected 31.8%; last 11.4%) and Construction Orders -6.7% yr/yr (last -32.3%)
  • South Korea's May Retail Sales 0.1% m/m (last -3.5%), May Industrial Production -3.0% m/m (last -0.7%); -0.9% yr/yr (last 1.5%). May Service Sector Output 1.3% m/m (last -0.9%)
  • Australia's June ANZ Business Confidence 36.6 (last 10.0). May Private Sector Credit 0.7% m/m (expected 0.6%; last 0.7%) and May Housing Credit 0.5% m/m (lats 0.6%)

---Equity Markets---

• Japan's Nikkei: +0.9%
• Hong Kong's Hang Seng: -0.6%
• China's Shanghai Composite: +0.5%
• India's Sensex: -0.3%
• South Korea's Kospi: +1.0%
• Australia's ASX All Ordinaries: -0.5%

Major European indices trade in the green. Flash June CPI readings from France and Italy were cooler than expected, resulting in the deceleration of their respective year-over-year rates while Germany's reading, which will be released at 8:00 ET, is expected to show a steady year-over-year inflation rate of 2.6%. Shipping giant Maersk raised its outlook for the year due to strong demand in the container shipping market. European Central Bank President Lagarde said that the June rate hike was a deliberate, unanimous, move, while policymaker Wunsch said that another rate hike could be needed quickly. Germany is looking for about EUR400 mln of spending cuts in the EU's EUR2 trln budget. The U.K.'s Q1 GDP reading was revised down to 0.9% yr/yr from 1.1%, weighing on expectations for a rate hike from the Bank of England.

• In economic data:
  • Germany's May Retail Sales 1.1% m/m (expected 0.0%; last -0.4%); 1.8% yr/yr (expected 0.0%; last -0.6%). May Import Price Index 0.7% m/m (expected 0.4%; last 1.2%); 6.8% yr/yr (last 5.3%)
  • U.K.'s Q1 GDP 0.6% qtr/qtr, as expected (last 0.1%); 0.9% yr/yr (expected 1.1%; last 0.9%). Q1 Business Investment 0.9% qtr/qtr (expected 0.7%; last -3.0%); -1.3% yr/yr (expected -1.8%; last 1.8%). Q1 Current Account deficit GBP22.1 bln (expected deficit of GBP22.2 bln; last deficit of GBP27.2 bln)
  • France's flash June CPI -0.2% m/m (expected 0.0%; last 0.1%); 1.8% yr/yr (expected 2.1%; last 2.4%). May PPI 3.0% yr/yr (last 2.3%). May Consumer Spending 0.5% m/m (expected 0.2%; last -0.5%)
  • Italy's flash June CPI 0.0% m/m (expected 0.2%; last 0.4%); 3.0% yr/yr (expected 3.1%; last 3.2%). May PPI -0.2% m/m (last 0.3%); 7.3% yr/yr (last 6.8%)
  • Spain's April Current Account surplus EUR1.88 bln (last surplus of EUR4.61 bln)
  • Swiss June KOF Leading Indicators 101.2 (expected 99.0; last 98.6)

---Equity Markets---

• STOXX Europe 600: +0.8%
• Germany's DAX: +1.3%
• U.K.'s FTSE 100: +0.8%
• France's CAC 40: +0.2%
• Italy's FTSE MIB: +0.8%
• Spain's IBEX 35: +0.5%

The S&P 500 futures currently trade eight points above fair value.

Digital Realty Trust (DLR 181.75, -8.83, -4.6%) and Blackstone (BX 114.75, -0.13, -0.1%) announce that Digital Realty has agreed to purchase from Blackstone-affiliated funds managed by Real Estate, Infrastructure and Tactical Opportunities a stake in three fully leased data centers containing 288 megawatts of total IT capacity in Northern Virginia at a gross value of $7.8 billion, reflecting an expected initial stabilized capitalization rate of over 6.5%.

Total consideration paid to Blackstone for its blended 64% equity interest in the assets will be $3.5 billion, including $1.2 billion of cash and $2.3 billion in shares of Digital Realty, based on the last reported sale price of the company's common stock on the New York Stock Exchange on June 29, 2026.

Equity futures point to a modestly higher opening as stocks look to extend a solid start to the holiday-abbreviated week. Mega-cap tech and semiconductor stocks benefited from a solid buy-the-dip bid, helping the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite reclaim around half of last week's losses. The DJIA posted a more modest gain but managed a record closing high of its own.

Today marks the last session of the second quarter, with CNBC reporting the DJIA is on pace for its best first half since 2021. The major averages all hold solid year-to-date gains, though the market has weathered its fair share of oil-driven volatility amid the conflict in Iran. Bloomberg reports that tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has picked up as the U.S. and Iran prepare for a fresh round of talks in Qatar today.

In corporate news:

• House Speaker Mike Johnson says President Trump will not veto bipartisan housing legislation, according to Politico.
• AeroVironment (AVAV 185.30, +46.30, +33.2%) beat EPS expectations by $0.38, beat revenue expectations, and guided FY27 EPS below consensus with revenues in-line.
• SpaceX (SPCX 164.10, -0.08, -0.1%) is talking with the Trump administration about donating stock for "Trump Accounts" according to Semafor.

Equity indices in the Asia-Pacific region had a mixed showing on Tuesday. Japan's Nikkei: +0.9%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng: -0.6%, China's Shanghai Composite: +0.5%, India's Sensex: -0.3%, South Korea's Kospi: +1.0%, Australia's ASX All Ordinaries: -0.5%.

In news:

• China's Manufacturing and Non-Manufacturing PMI readings for June reflected slight expansion, which was a touch better than expected.
• The dollar has continued climbing against the yen, sending the Japanese currency to its lowest level since late 1986.
• Japan's Finance Minister Katayama said that she won't comment on specific currency levels and that decisive action is an option for policymakers.
• China's electric vehicle exports for May were up 48% year-over-year.

In economic data:

• China's June Manufacturing PMI 50.3 (expected 50.1; last 50.0) and June Non-Manufacturing PMI 50.2 (expected 49.9; last 50.1)
• Japan's May Industrial Production 0.5% m/m (expected 0.6%; last 0.5%), May jobs/applications ratio 1.17 (expected 1.18; last 1.18), and May Unemployment Rate 2.5%, as expected (last 2.5%). May Housing Starts 33.9% yr/yr (expected 31.8%; last 11.4%) and Construction Orders -6.7% yr/yr (last -32.3%)
• South Korea's May Retail Sales 0.1% m/m (last -3.5%), May Industrial Production -3.0% m/m (last -0.7%); -0.9% yr/yr (last 1.5%). May Service Sector Output 1.3% m/m (last -0.9%)
• Australia's June ANZ Business Confidence 36.6 (last 10.0). May Private Sector Credit 0.7% m/m (expected 0.6%; last 0.7%) and May Housing Credit 0.5% m/m (lats 0.6%)

Major European indices trade in the green. STOXX Europe 600: +1.1%, Germany's DAX: +1.5%, U.K.'s FTSE 100: +0.6%, France's CAC 40: +0.6%, Italy's FTSE MIB: +1.1%, Spain's IBEX 35: +0.6%.

In news:

• Flash June CPI readings from France and Italy were cooler than expected, resulting in the deceleration of their respective year-over-year rates while Germany's reading, which will be released at 8:00 ET, is expected to show a steady year-over-year inflation rate of 2.6%.
• Shipping giant Maersk raised its outlook for the year due to strong demand in the container shipping market.
• European Central Bank President Lagarde said that the June rate hike was a deliberate, unanimous, move, while policymaker Wunsch said that another rate hike could be needed quickly.
• Germany is looking for about EUR400 mln of spending cuts in the EU's EUR2 trln budget.
• The U.K.'s Q1 GDP reading was revised down to 0.9% yr/yr from 1.1%, weighing on expectations for a rate hike from the Bank of England.

In economic data:

• Germany's May Retail Sales 1.1% m/m (expected 0.0%; last -0.4%); 1.8% yr/yr (expected 0.0%; last -0.6%). May Import Price Index 0.7% m/m (expected 0.4%; last 1.2%); 6.8% yr/yr (last 5.3%)
• U.K.'s Q1 GDP 0.6% qtr/qtr, as expected (last 0.1%); 0.9% yr/yr (expected 1.1%; last 0.9%). Q1 Business Investment 0.9% qtr/qtr (expected 0.7%; last -3.0%); -1.3% yr/yr (expected -1.8%; last 1.8%). Q1 Current Account deficit GBP22.1 bln (expected deficit of GBP22.2 bln; last deficit of GBP27.2 bln)
• France's flash June CPI -0.2% m/m (expected 0.0%; last 0.1%); 1.8% yr/yr (expected 2.1%; last 2.4%). May PPI 3.0% yr/yr (last 2.3%). May Consumer Spending 0.5% m/m (expected 0.2%; last -0.5%)
• Italy's flash June CPI 0.0% m/m (expected 0.2%; last 0.4%); 3.0% yr/yr (expected 3.1%; last 3.2%). May PPI -0.2% m/m (last 0.3%); 7.3% yr/yr (last 6.8%)
• Spain's April Current Account surplus EUR1.88 bln (last surplus of EUR4.61 bln)
• Swiss June KOF Leading Indicators 101.2 (expected 99.0; last 98.6)

[BRIEFING.COM] The major averages started the new week with solid gains as investors rotated back into the market's largest technology names following last week's broadening in market leadership. The S&P 500 (+1.2%), Nasdaq Composite (+2.1%), and DJIA (+0.6%) all finished higher, with the Vanguard Mega Cap Growth ETF climbing 2.6%.

After ceding ground to other areas of the market last week, mega-cap technology stocks reasserted themselves. Five of the "Magnificent Seven" stocks finished higher, allowing the market-weighted S&P 500 to comfortably outperform the S&P 500 Equal Weight Index (+0.2%). The DJIA also benefited from its recent addition of Alphabet A (GOOGL 353.65, +16.26, +4.82%) Class A shares, giving the price-weighted index modestly greater exposure to today's rebound in mega-cap technology.

The communication services sector (+3.1%) led the advance, with Alphabet A (GOOGL 353.65, +16.26, +4.82%) providing solid leadership following its first full session as a DJIA component. Elsewhere, Comcast (CMCSA 24.22, +1.05, +4.53%) traded higher after announcing plans to separate NBCUniversal and Sky into an independent public company through a tax-free spin-off, while Charter Comm (CHTR 146.17, +12.53, +9.38%) gained after Bloomberg reported the company is in discussions with SpaceX (SPCX 164.06, +10.82, +7.06%) regarding a mobile phone partnership. The Comcast news, however, weighed on other broadband and wireless providers, including Verizon (VZ 44.10, -2.44, -5.24%), T-Mobile US (TMUS 173.97, -8.71, -4.77%), and AT&T (T 21.82, -0.90, -3.96%).

The consumer discretionary sector (+2.7%) also posted a strong gain as its mega-cap components rebounded. Tesla (TSLA 411.84, +32.13, +8.46%) reclaimed its 50-day moving average (405.03), while Amazon (AMZN 240.14, +7.45, +3.20%) benefited from encouraging Prime Day sales data.

Technology stocks experienced considerable intraday volatility before ultimately finishing as one of the market's leadership groups. Semiconductor stocks recovered from an early selloff that briefly sent the PHLX Semiconductor Index more than 2% lower before ending the session up 3.8%. Early weakness in memory names following reports that Apple (AAPL 281.74, -2.04, -0.72%) was seeking approval to purchase memory chips from China's ChangXin Memory Technologies ultimately gave way to broad buying interest, while Applied Materials (AMAT 694.64, +67.80, +10.82%), Corning (GLW 255.79, +34.74, +15.72%), and other AI infrastructure beneficiaries rallied on news of major long-term investment plans from Samsung and SK Hynix. Corning finished as the top-performing S&P 500 component.

Software also contributed to the advance, with the iShares Expanded Tech-Software Sector ETF (IGV) rising 1.9%.

The information technology sector (+1.7%) finished among the market's leaders despite late-session weakness in Super Micro Computer (SMCI 28.15, -2.48, -8.10%), which declined after Bloomberg reported that Taiwanese authorities raided one of the company's offices as part of an investigation into the smuggling of NVIDIA chips into China.

Elsewhere, the industrials (+0.8%), health care (+0.1%), and financials (+0.1%) sectors also finished higher.

The materials sector (-1.9%) was the day's weakest performer as construction materials names gave back a portion of last week's gains, with Martin Marietta (MLM 581.23, -34.83, -5.65%) particularly weak after announcing the acquisition of Lhoist North America.

The real estate sector (-0.7) also lagged, while the defensive consumer staples (-0.4%) and utilities (-0.5%) sectors underperformed as investors rotated back toward growth-oriented stocks.

Overall, today's session marked a convincing rebound for the market's largest technology names after they ceded leadership last week. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite recovered roughly half of last week's losses, while the S&P 500 also reclaimed its 50-day moving average (7,371), which it briefly lost in Friday's session.

U.S. Treasuries started the holiday week on a quiet note with 10-year note yield and shorter tenors finishing lower for the first time since last Monday while the long bond outperformed, settling just above its unchanged level. The 2-year note yield settled up two basis points to 4.11%, and the 10-year note yield finished unchanged at 4.37%. 

There was no economic data of note.

• Russell 2000: +21.3% YTD
• S&P Mid Cap 400: +15.8% YTD
• Nasdaq Composite: +11.1% YTD
• S&P 500: +8.7% YTD
• DJIA: +8.6% YTD