Stocks climb, chips rip, and oil keeps the heat on markets

The big picture. U.S. stocks end mixed but mostly higher. The S&P 500 rises 0.3% to 7748.5, the Nasdaq gains 0.5% to 26588.5, and the Russell 2000 adds 0.6%. The Dow slips 0.0%. Tech is the top sector, up 1.5%, while Real Estate also jumps 0.9%. Discretionary falls 1.1% and Materials drops 1.2%.

Volatility keeps falling. The VIX drops 4.8% to 14.55, while the 9-day VIX tumbles 34.2% to 11.09. On the options tape, SPY shows a put-call ratio of 1.07 and QQQ comes in at 0.97, with activity centered near the 772 to 773 SPY strikes and 724 to 725 on QQQ.

Overseas, the tone is uneven. Japan’s Nikkei rises 2.1% and Australia’s ASX 200 adds 0.2%, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng falls 1.1% and Shanghai slips 0.8%. In Europe, the DAX gains 0.3%, the Stoxx 600 is flat, and the FTSE 100 edges down 0.1%.

Crypto is softer. Bitcoin slips 0.1% to 63468.7, Ethereum falls 0.2% to 1878.0, and the total crypto market cap falls 0.35% to $2.3T. Bitcoin dominance stands at 56.3%.