Stocks climbed on Thursday, but the market’s biggest move came in an old-line blue-chip gauge: the Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped more than 1.8%, or 875 points, to a fresh record high as investors piled into healthcare and financial stocks. The S&P 500 added 0.5%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite was little changed.
The move mattered because it showed where money was going after a harsh reaction to Broadcom’s outlook. Broadcom shares sank more than 12% after the chipmaker’s AI forecast disappointed Wall Street, with the stock tumbling as much as 15% before trimming losses. The weaker-than-expected AI chip outlook, along with Broadcom’s decision to reiterate rather than raise its 2026 guidance, raised questions about how much longer the booming AI trade can keep carrying the market.
Thursday’s trading also reflected a broader shift away from semiconductors and toward sectors investors often turn to when they want steadier footing. Semiconductor stocks including Intel, AMD and Arm Holdings trimmed losses, while Micron rose more than 5% and SanDisk climbed more than 3% after a steeper sell-off. Marvell Technology rose as much as 5% after opening in the red, Nvidia was up 2.7% at last check, and Google advanced 3.8%.
The Dow’s surge came after a tense stretch for markets earlier in the week, when stocks retreated from records as hopes for a quick Iran deal faded and oil rose. That pressure on risk assets eased enough for traders to move back into financials and healthcare, even as the Nasdaq lagged and the market’s enthusiasm for AI stocks looked less automatic than it did a day earlier.
Fresh labor data added to the day’s trade, with weekly jobless claims ticking up to 225,000 for the week ending May 30. Separate layoff data from Challenger, Gray & Christmas showed job cuts rose, and investors were left waiting for Friday’s May jobs report to see whether the labor market is cooling fast enough to matter for stocks. The unanswered question now is whether Thursday’s rotation out of semiconductors and into defensive shares becomes a lasting turn, or just another sharp reaction to one disappointing AI forecast.
