U.S. stocks close: The three major indices decline for the second consecutive day, optical communications defy the trend and strengthen, SanDisk continues to hit new highs.

Ask AI · What Key Role Did Oil Prices Play in the U.S. Stock Market’s Rebound After Consecutive Declines?

Cailian Press, March 20 (Editor Zhao Hao) On Thursday (March 19), the three major U.S. stock indices closed lower for two consecutive days, but the declines narrowed significantly from earlier in the day.

By the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.44%, closing at 46021.43 points; the S&P 500 Index fell 0.27%, closing at 6606.49 points; the Nasdaq Composite Index fell 0.28%, closing at 22090.69 points, all at new lows since last November.

During the day, the Nasdaq once fell nearly 1.4%, hitting a low of 21851.05 points, the lowest level since last September; the Dow and S&P also briefly dropped over 1%, only starting to recover their intraday losses about an hour before the close.

Currently, the performance of U.S. stocks is highly “negatively correlated” with international crude oil prices. During the day, WTI crude oil futures briefly surged above $100 per barrel but then continued to decline—this was also when the three major U.S. indices began to rebound.

CCTV News reported that France, the UK, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, and Japan announced in a joint statement that they are prepared to take appropriate measures to ensure the safety of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.

According to Xinhua News Agency, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu stated at a press conference on the 19th that Israel will “comply” with Trump’s request to “pause” subsequent airstrikes on energy facilities.

Meanwhile, the U.S. Department of the Treasury announced on its website the issuance of a new general license related to Russia: allowing the sale of Russian crude oil and petroleum products loaded on ships starting March 12.

Dennis Follmer, Chief Investment Officer of Montis Financial, stated: “The market is eager to understand how long this surge in oil prices will last, which is why there’s volatility in the market.”

Peter Boockvar, Chief Investment Officer of One Point BFG Wealth Partners, commented: “The conflict has entered its fourth week and may not end quickly; even if it does, commodity prices will definitely not return to pre-war levels.”

Scott Wren of Wells Fargo Investment Institute stated: “Market sentiment may still be leaning negative, and there could be more room for a larger decline. We believe that a pullback of 7% to 10% from the historical highs will be a good opportunity to enter.”

Performance of Popular Stocks

The “seven giants” collectively fell, with Nvidia down 1.02%, Google C down 0.19%, Apple down 0.39%, Microsoft down 0.71%, Amazon down 0.53%, Meta down 1.46%, and Tesla down 3.18%.

Chip stocks performed strongly against the market trend, with the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index up 0.87% (having briefly fallen 3% earlier), and 22 of the 30 component stocks closed higher. Credo Technology rose 5.28%, AMD rose 2.91%, and Intel rose 2.55%.

Most optical communication stocks rose, with Lumentum up 10.18%, Applied Optoelectronics up 10.03%, Fabrinet up 8.06%, Coherent up 7.14%, and Corning up 2.48%.

Storage-related stocks overall strengthened, with Seagate Technology up 6.84%, Western Digital up 3.95%. SanDisk rose 2.44%, closing at a historical high; Micron Technology fell 3.78%, as the company’s revenue nearly doubled, but high expenditure plans raised concerns.

Gold mining stocks declined, with Newmont Mining down 6.89%, Harmony Gold down 6.25%, and Coeur Mining down 5.14%.

In the Chinese concept stock sector, the Livermore Chinese concept stock index closed down 2.02%, and the Nasdaq Golden Dragon China Index fell 1%.

Most popular Chinese concept stocks fell, with Alibaba down 7.09%, Futu Holdings down 3.59%, and Pinduoduo down 3.27%; Atour rose 4.11%, Xpeng Motors rose 2.02%, and TAL Education Group rose 1.79%.

Company News

[Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang Calls on Tech Leaders to Avoid Spreading AI Panic]

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang stated in response to questions about the dispute between Anthropic and the Pentagon that tech leaders need to be cautious and avoid inciting public panic about artificial intelligence. “Issuing warnings to the public about AI is a good starting point,” Huang said at a panel discussion at the Nvidia Technology Conference. “Warnings are good, but scare tactics are not, because this technology is too important for us.” Huang believes the greatest national security risk related to AI is that the public may become angry, fearful, or suspicious, thus causing the U.S. to lag behind its competitors in adopting this technology.

[Google Expands Collaboration with Utility Companies to Reduce Energy Consumption During Peak Hours]

Reports indicate that Google has signed agreements with utility companies in five states, from Arkansas to Minnesota, to reduce its electricity consumption during peak hours. This is the company’s latest measure to ensure power supply for its rapidly growing data centers amid slow growth in new power supply.

[Li Bin: NIO’s Self-Developed Chips Exceed 550,000 Units in Mass Production]

Li Bin, founder, chairman, and CEO of NIO, delivered a keynote speech at the Advanced Manufacturing Summit - (2026) Semiconductor Industry Summit in Shanghai. Li stated that the automotive semiconductor industry currently faces three key challenges: rapid growth in AI computing power demand, fragmentation of chip systems, and increased supply chain volatility. As of now, NIO’s self-developed chips have exceeded 550,000 units in mass production.

[Alibaba CEO Wu Yongming: Pingtouge Does Not Rule Out IPO, No Clear Timeline Yet]

At Alibaba Group’s earnings conference call, CEO Wu Yongming stated that there will be a severe shortage of computing power globally in the next three to five years, and the value of Pingtouge lies not only in cost optimization but also in ensuring the supply of computing power. Pingtouge does not rule out an IPO in the future, but there is currently no clear timeline.

[U.S. Regulatory Agencies Unveil Plans to Relax Capital Requirements for Large Banks]

According to a proposal released by the Federal Reserve on Thursday, regulators will relax capital requirements for Wall Street credit giants, which could free up hundreds of billions of dollars for loans, stock buybacks, and dividends. “These changes will strengthen our overall capital framework, which will remain robust under the new regime,” said Michelle Bowman, Vice Chair for Supervision at the Federal Reserve, in a statement. The new proposal was jointly developed by Federal Reserve officials, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), and will undergo a 90-day public consultation period before finalization.

[U.S. State Department Approves Military Sale Plans to Multiple Countries in the Middle East]

The U.S. State Department has approved military sale plans that may include the sale of aircraft and ammunition support services and related equipment to Jordan; approved the sale of fixed-wing drone integrated defense systems, F-16 munitions and upgrade services, and long-range identification radar with “terminal high altitude area defense system” integration capabilities to the UAE; and approved the sale of low-altitude air defense missile sensor radars to Kuwait.

(Cailian Press, Zhao Hao)