The Nasdaq Composite rallied 1.3% on July 9, 2026, as investors focused on artificial intelligence opportunities and an anticipated memory chip debut, brushing aside escalating U.S.-Iran military tensions that had rattled markets the day before.
The tech-heavy index closed at 26,206.89, while the S&P 500 gained 0.8% to 7,543.64 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.27% to 52,487.41. Semiconductor stocks led the advance, with the VanEck Semiconductor ETF climbing 2.5%, driven by strength in memory and data center chips.
Micron Technology surged 4.5%, while SanDisk jumped 7.6%, according to CNBC. The rally reflected investor appetite for AI infrastructure ahead of SK Hynix’s highly anticipated Nasdaq debut on Friday. The South Korean memory chipmaker’s U.S. listing saw demand running at seven times the amount of shares available, according to Yahoo Finance, signaling sustained confidence in AI-related semiconductors despite recent market volatility.
The strength in chip stocks came even as the U.S. and Iran traded fresh attacks. The U.S. military launched airstrikes on 90 Iranian targets on Thursday, and Iran retaliated by striking targets in U.S.-allied Middle East countries, putting a fragile truce to the test, Yahoo Finance reported. Yet oil prices fell on the day, erasing some of Wednesday’s gains as markets factored in the bumpy path to Middle East peace.
The focus on AI and the SK Hynix IPO reflected a broader rotation in investor sentiment. After a volatile stretch in June and early July that had hit chip stocks hard, traders were reassessing the long-term demand for memory and processing power driven by generative AI expansion. SK Hynix, the world’s second-largest memory chip manufacturer, is seeking to raise approximately $28 billion through the listing, according to Reuters.
Megan Horneman, chief investment officer at Verdence, told CNBC that the market environment would likely remain volatile given the “on-again, off-again” dynamic of the Middle East conflict. She noted that equities at current levels may not be pricing in the possibility of at least one Federal Reserve rate hike in the second half of 2026, adding that the combination of elevated oil prices, strong economic growth, and heavy AI infrastructure investment was “inflationary” in the near term.
The rally represented a reversal from Wednesday, when renewed geopolitical tensions had sent the Nasdaq down and oil prices spiking more than 4%. On Thursday, investors appeared willing to look past the headlines and bet on the structural demand for AI chips, with semiconductor stocks outperforming the broader market despite the Middle East uncertainty.
Sources
- Yahoo Finance — Nasdaq Composite closing data, SK Hynix IPO oversubscription details, U.S.-Iran military exchanges, and oil price movements on July 9, 2026
- CNBC — Semiconductor ETF performance, individual chip stock gains (Micron, SanDisk), analyst commentary from Megan Horneman on market volatility and inflation concerns
- Reuters — SK Hynix U.S. listing fundraising target and context on memory chip demand
