Nasdaq drops 1.5% as chip selloff goes global
July 17, 2026
Published Friday, July 17, 2026
The Nasdaq fell 1.47% on Thursday to 25,882, dragged down by another rout in semiconductor stocks. The S&P 500 lost 0.51% to 7,534 and the Dow slipped 0.20%, per TradingKey. On Friday the selling spread to Asia and US futures point lower again. The market is questioning the price of AI, not AI itself.
Nasdaq buckles under chip stocks
The SOX semiconductor index sank 4.29%, its second straight heavy loss, according to TradingKey. SanDisk plunged 12.6%, Marvell lost 8.7%, Intel 5.8%, Micron 5.7% and AMD 5.3%. Nvidia held up better, down 2.4%. Investors are questioning AI valuations and the real payback on the billions poured into data centers. Rising yields add pressure: the 10-year Treasury climbed to 4.56% on inflation worries tied to the US-Iran conflict.
TSMC posts a record profit and it is not enough
The week's paradox comes from TSMC. The Taiwanese chipmaker reported a record quarterly net profit, up 77% year on year to NT$706.6 billion, about $22 billion, per TradingKey. The stock still fell 2.3%. When a blowout number cannot lift a share price, the market had already priced in perfection. The US economy itself looks solid: June retail sales rose 0.2%, in line with forecasts, and jobless claims eased to 208,000.
The shock spreads to Asia before the US open
Tokyo amplified the move on Friday. The Nikkei dropped more than 5% to 63,357, its lowest in over a month, the AP reported. Tokyo Electron lost 9.3%, Advantest 10.5% and SoftBank 11.4%. Kioxia sank about 15% more and has now erased 44% in a month. This morning, S&P 500 futures are down 0.8% and Nasdaq futures 1.5%. The VIX remains contained at 16.7. On the Fed side, Vice Chair Philip Jefferson does not rule out another rate hike if inflation fails to cool, less than two weeks before the July 28-29 meeting. That caps risk appetite heading into the weekend. Follow the next moves in our daily market brief.
Key Nasdaq and S&P 500 levels for today
Levels flagged intraday on Thursday by Greg Michalowski at investingLive.
| Instrument | Level (support / resistance) | Change | Scenario / What to watch |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nasdaq 100 | Support 25,920 then 25,529 / Resistance 26,302 | Futures -1.5% Friday morning | A break of 25,920 opens the door to the June 8 low at 25,529. Reclaiming 26,302 would put buyers back in charge |
| S&P 500 | Support 7,526 then 7,468 / Resistance 7,578 | -0.51% Thursday (daily) | Below 7,526, 7,468 is next. Above 7,578, the 7,620.90 record comes back into play |
Economic calendar
- 8:30 AM ET: June housing starts. A weak print would revive growth worries, a solid one would back the soft-landing case.
- 9:15 AM ET: June industrial production. An upside surprise would support the Dow and cyclicals.
- 10:00 AM ET: University of Michigan sentiment (July, preliminary) with inflation expectations. If expectations climb, yields and the dollar rise and tech stays under pressure. If they ease, markets get a breather before the July 29 Fed decision.
The takeaway
The market is not selling AI, it is selling its price. Until chip stocks stabilize, any Nasdaq bounce will stay fragile.
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This is not investment advice.