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Wall Street falls as chip shares slide and Fed leaves rates unchanged

Wall Street falls as chip shares slide and Fed leaves rates unchanged

U.S. stocks weakened as the Dow dropped 900 points, chipmakers fell after SK Hynix's results, oil prices rose on U.S.-Iran tensions, and investors braced for major tech earnings after the Fed held rates steady.

Fact Check
The official Federal Reserve FOMC statement for July 29, 2026 confirms rates were held at 3.5%-3.75% with a 9-3 vote and three dissents (Hammack, Kashkari, Logan) preferring a quarter-point hike, matching the claim's 'three dissents for a hike.' CNN's live coverage corroborates the rate hold, the three dissents in favor of a hike, semiconductor/chip stocks sliding amid a tech sell-off before major tech earnings, and oil prices jumping ~7% on renewed U.S.-Iran tensions. Every element of the claim is supported by a primary government source plus credible secondary reporting.
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Summary

Wall Street remained under pressure on July 29 as the Federal Reserve left interest rates unchanged in a decision that included three dissents in favor of a hike, while investors also weighed a renewed selloff in semiconductor shares, rising oil prices tied to fresh strikes between Iran and the U.S., and looming earnings from Microsoft and Meta. By later in the session, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 were both down 0.7% and the Dow had lost 900 points. Chipmakers including Micron, Applied Materials and Sandisk fell between 4% and 8% after SK Hynix's results deepened concerns that heavy AI infrastructure spending may be overdone, extending pressure on Magnificent 7 and semiconductor stocks. Visa was a rare bright spot, rebounding 1% after reporting quarterly revenue growth.

Terms & Concepts
  • AI infrastructure spending: Capital spending on data centers, chips and related systems used to build and run artificial intelligence services
  • Magnificent 7: A market label for a group of dominant U.S. mega-cap technology stocks that have heavily influenced equity index performance
  • Federal Reserve: The U.S. central bank, which sets monetary policy and benchmark interest rates