Oil plunges 4.8%, dollar slides and semiconductors drive gains

WTI and Brent fell 4.8%, prompting dollar weakness and a semiconductor-led rally that lifted the S&P 500 +0.4% on May 25.

• Oil (WTI/Brent) -4.8% slump helped push the dollar down and the S&P 500 closed +0.4%.

• Nasdaq gained +0.2% and the Dow rose +0.6% as chip stocks outperformed.

• Watchlist: tomorrow’s FOMC and jobs data, plus Costco and Salesforce earnings this week.

Middle East peace hopes rock oil and the dollar Optimism about progress on a Middle East deal cut risk premia, sending oil lower and restoring risk appetite across equities.

• Investing.com reported that talk of reopening the Strait of Hormuz reduced the region’s risk premium.

• Equities: Dow +0.6%, S&P 500 +0.4%, Nasdaq +0.2%; VIX at 16.62, up +0.2%, signaling only a modest rise in short-term volatility.

Costco (COST) earnings D-3 Costco’s report on May 28 is the next major retail catalyst and could swing consumer-discretionary flows.

• Schedule: D-3 — 2026-05-28 (COST).

• Depending on results, retail and broader cyclical sectors may see sharper rotation.

Risk-on extends to semiconductors and tech Oil and dollar moves, combined with AI spending optimism, lifted semiconductor names and buoyed Nasdaq breadth.

• Nvidia (NVDA) and other chip stocks led the session’s gains.

• AI-related demand expectations and upcoming earnings should keep sector momentum in focus.