US Stock Market Summary — August 11, 2026

The three major indexes fell for a second straight day. The S&P 500 dropped 0.32% to 7,728.20, the Nasdaq slipped 0.60% to 26,445.45, and the Dow lost 0.34% to 53,791.85 (WSJ). Two triggers drove the move. First, Iran said it would keep the Strait of Hormuz — the chokepoint through which Middle Eastern crude flows — shut until its demands were met (Fortune). The faint hopes of a negotiated deal that had lingered the day before evaporated in a single session (Reuters). Brent crude (the European benchmark) pushed above $88 a barrel (Fortune). Second, doubts about AI capital expenditure — the money being poured into facilities like data centers — dragged on megacap tech (Yahoo Finance). On top of that, the July Consumer Price Index — a measure of how fast prices are rising — was slated for release the next morning (MarketWatch). When oil climbs, inflation tends to follow. The market opted to wait and watch. The VIX (the volatility index) fell 1.29% to 15.26. The Fear & Greed Index (an investor-sentiment thermometer) read 61, in "Greed."

Today's rotation — the flow of capital moving between sectors — had a clear direction: money rotated out of AI spenders and into oil and utilities. That said, it would be a mistake to read this as "AI got sold off across the board." Companies spending on AI infrastructure lagged, but the semiconductor firms selling equipment into that infrastructure rallied.

Separately, the CME (Chicago Mercantile Exchange) announced it will list two futures contracts on AI computing power (GPU rental rates) on October 5, pending regulatory approval. Trading has not yet begun, but it signals that AI infrastructure is establishing itself as a tradable asset class (CNBC).

> Key events for the next trading day are displayed automatically.

> "With no progress on peace talks and oil moving higher, there was some pressure on stocks. That said, relative to last week's rally, investors took the news in fairly measured fashion."

> — Mark Hackett, Chief Strategist at Nationwide Funds Group

> "Refined product prices are elevated, and stickier components of services inflation such as rents and medical costs are showing little sign of cooling. That makes it hard to be constructive on the near-term inflation outlook."

> — Doug Beath, Global Equity Strategist at Wells Fargo Investment Institute

> "A resolution to the Middle East conflict could add further fuel to sentiment. The current economic backdrop is friendly to risk assets."

> — Jeffrey Roach, Chief Economist at LPL Financial

> "The July CPI will provide ammunition on both sides of the September rate-cut debate. It's not just whether the print misses or beats by a tenth of a percent; the key question is whether the gap between CPI and core PCE inflation starts to narrow."

> — Laura Cooper, Global Investment Strategist and Head of Macro Credit at Nuveen

Technical signals were split down the middle: 120 bullish and 120 bearish across 240 signals. Today's indecisive session is captured neatly in the numbers. Microsoft and Palantier, for instance, flashed overbought signals (a state where a stock has risen so much that near-term pressure builds), while Tesla, Micron, and ASML triggered golden crosses (a signal in which a short-term moving average breaks above a longer-term one). Per-name signals are available on the Today's Signals page. Today was a day the market chose to defer its verdict, so tomorrow all you really need to watch is the July inflation print in the morning.