Midday: U.S. stocks continue to rise, Nasdaq rises 1.3%
In the early morning of July 22, Beijing time, U.S. stocks continued to rise in midday trading on Tuesday, with chip stocks leading the gains and the Nasdaq Composite Index rising 1.3%. Investors are weighing the impact of the escalation of the U.S.-Iran war and paying attention to the latest corporate earnings reports. The Dow rose 384.28 points, or 0.74%, to 52223.54 points; the Nasdaq rose 335.974 points, or 1.32%, to 25844.046 points; the S&P 500 rose 62.50 points, or 0.84%, to 7505.78 points. The company's second-quarter profit exceeded expectations, and the stock price rose by more than 5%. The announced profit also beat expectations, pushing the stock price up about 2%. This earnings season is off to a strong start. According to FactSet data, of the approximately 54 S&P 500 index companies that have released financial reports, 87% have exceeded profit expectations. Major companies due to report earnings later this week include Parent company Alphabet, As companies release their latest earnings reports this week, traders will be paying close attention to details around artificial intelligence spending. They also listen closely during earnings calls to confirm that executives are not becoming more cautious in their outlook for the second half of the year. The semiconductor sector also boosted the overall market in early trading. The VanEck Semiconductor ETF (SMH) rose more than 3%. Marvell Technology, Technology and Astera Labs both rose about 6% before the market opened. Tuesday's gains followed a down session as traders weighed the impact of an escalating war between the United States and Iran. The U.S. Central Command has launched airstrikes against Iran for the tenth consecutive night since U.S. President Trump announced the "end" of the U.S.-Iran ceasefire, while Tehran's forces have attacked U.S. military assets in the Middle East and its Houthi allies have declared a maritime embargo on Saudi Arabia. Oil prices were choppy on Tuesday as Wall Street focused on a new diplomatic push for mediation efforts between the United States and Iran. There are reports that the mediators have proposed a 10-day ceasefire between the two hostile countries. West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures rose more than 1%, standing above $84 a barrel, while international benchmark Brent crude oil futures also rose more than 1%, above $90 a barrel. Oil prices were higher during Monday's trading session after Trump posted on "Truth Social" that Tehran would pay for the deaths of three U.S. soldiers. Rising energy prices dragged major averages lower on the day, even as semiconductor stocks recovered some of last week's steep losses.