Dow and S&P 500 Rise as Micron Soothes Fears, PCE Inflation Data Released

The Dow and S&P 500 rose while the Nasdaq slippage occurred alongside PCE's hot inflation data release, with Micron's earnings mitigating fears. Apple and Big Tech stocks faltered. Investors watched trends.

U.S. equity markets posted a split session on June 25, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 finishing higher after MU's blowout Q3 earnings countered earlier anxiety from a hotter-than-expected PCE inflation print. The Nasdaq lagged, dragged by AAPL's 6% decline following the company's announcement of Mac and iPad price hikes due to a component shortage — a rare Big Tech underperformer on a broadly constructive day.

Micron's results were the dominant narrative: Q3 revenue of $41.5 billion, an 84.9% gross margin, and confirmation of $100 billion in long-term AI supply contracts provided a clear counterpoint to the prior session's chip-sector selloff. PCE inflation at 4.1% — a three-year high — initially weighed on sentiment and pushed rate-cut expectations to roughly one cut by year-end 2026, but markets absorbed the data as broadly in line with the Fed's higher-for-longer posture rather than a signal of policy surprise.

The session underscores a pattern that has defined 2026 markets: macro data and AI fundamentals trading as separate, sometimes competing narratives. When AI demand signals are strong enough — as Micron's print demonstrated — they can override macro headwinds within a single trading session. Investors will be watching whether the PCE data accelerates the Fed's hawkish pivot language at the July FOMC meeting, particularly given that services inflation remains above 5% annualized.