Chipmakers and Bitcoin Lift Stocks as Crude Sinks 4%
Chips, Bitcoin and crypto stocks rally as crude plunges and the S&P 500 hits a 5-week high ahead of the Trump-Xi summit, Nasdaq reports.
· 4 min read
US equity indexes closed sharply higher on Monday, September 21, 2026, with the S&P 500 up 1.49% at a five-week high, the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 0.71%, and the Nasdaq 100 up 2.83% at a three-month high, Nasdaq reported.
The rally was helped by a plunge in crude oil, which pushed bond yields lower and lifted market sentiment. West Texas Intermediate sank more than 4% to a 1.5-week low, and the 10-year T-note yield fell 3 basis points to 4.96%. Nasdaq also pointed to optimism ahead of this week’s summit between Presidents Trump and Xi Jinping, plus rallies in chipmakers, AI-infrastructure names and cryptocurrency-exposed stocks. Bitcoin surged more than 7% to a 7.5-month high, extending a 5% jump last Friday after the SEC moved forward with a plan to let digital versions of securities trade in the US.
Also read: S&P 500 Climbs 1.49% as Crude Plunges and Chips Surge
Key facts
- The S&P 500 closed up 1.49% at a five-week high; the Nasdaq 100 closed up 2.83% at a three-month high.
- WTI crude sank more than 4% to a 1.5-week low, and the 10-year T-note yield fell to 4.96%.
- Bitcoin rose more than 7% to a 7.5-month high, adding to last Friday’s 5% gain.
- ARM Holdings closed up more than 16%, Intel more than 12%, and the iShares Semiconductor ETF more than 4%.
- Markets are pricing a 55% chance of a 25 basis point Fed rate hike at the October 27-28 FOMC meeting.
Chipmakers lead, energy lags
Semiconductor and AI names drove the gains. The iShares Semiconductor ETF closed up more than 4% at a five-week high, ARM Holdings led Nasdaq 100 gainers with a gain of more than 16%, and Intel led the S&P 500 with a rise of more than 12%. AMD and Qualcomm each closed up more than 9%, while Marvell Technology rose more than 6%. Applied Materials and Lam Research added more than 5%, and KLA Corp rose more than 4%.
Among the Magnificent Seven, Meta Platforms closed up more than 11% after its new Muse artificial intelligence app climbed to the top of mobile app charts. Tesla rose 3%, Nvidia more than 2%, and Alphabet, Amazon.com and Microsoft each gained more than 1%. Apple closed up 0.85%.
Also read: LOAN trades at $3.97, below CEO Assaf Ran's $3.99 insider buy price
Crypto-exposed equities followed Bitcoin higher. Strategy closed up more than 9%, BitMine Immersion Technologies more than 7%, Bullish and Galaxy Digital Holdings more than 5%, and Coinbase Global more than 3%. Circle Internet Group and Robinhood Markets each added more than 2%, while Riot Platforms and Iren Ltd rose more than 1%.
Cheaper fuel helped airlines and cruise operators. United Airlines closed up more than 5%, American Airlines more than 4%, Delta Air Lines and Alaska Air Group more than 3%, and Carnival more than 2%. Energy producers moved the other way: Marathon Petroleum led S&P 500 decliners with a drop of more than 5%, Phillips 66 and Valero Energy fell more than 4%, ConocoPhillips and ExxonMobil Holdings more than 3%, and Chevron more than 2%.
Elsewhere, Warner Bros. Discovery closed up more than 10% after Paramount Skydance settled lawsuits from 12 state attorneys general and the Writers Guild trade union, clearing a path for Paramount to acquire the company. Ciena added more than 5% after an Evercore ISI upgrade with a $550 price target, and Candel Therapeutics rose more than 3% after a Bank of America Global Research upgrade with an $18 target.
Why it matters
The session showed how quickly equities can reprice when energy costs and rate expectations move together. Lower crude trims input costs for transport and consumer-facing companies, while falling bond yields support valuations for long-duration growth names such as chipmakers. Hawkish comments from Fed officials capped the gains, keeping the timing of any further tightening unresolved.
What to watch
Markets are discounting a 55% chance of a 25 basis point Fed rate hike at the October 27-28 FOMC meeting, with a 46% chance of a similar ECB move on October 29. Investors will also watch this week’s Trump-Xi summit and whether crude flows through the Strait of Hormuz hold near their six-month high.
This article is for informational purposes only and is not financial advice. Markets are volatile and prices can move sharply in either direction.
Source: Nasdaq
Benjamin Carter covers business, finance, and the stock market for StockPil, focusing on the trends and data that matter to everyday investors.
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