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THE CHIPS ARE DOWN: TECH DIPS AHEAD OF ALPHABET, TESLA EARNINGS

The Nasdaq .IXIC began Wednesday's session in the red, with chip shares once again spoiling the party ahead of some high-profile tech earnings expected after the bell.

The S&P 500 is roughly flat, while the Dow .DJI is gaining ground with the assistance of energy .SPNY and materials .SPLRCM, both of which were enjoying the benefits of a rising tide of supply chain worries.

The prospect of a near-term, lasting peace agreement between Washington and Tehran is growing less likely with each passing day, as traffic through the Strait of Hormuz—and now the Red Sea due to Iran-backed Houthis—adds to supply concerns and is sending WTI crude futures CLc1 spiking more than 3%.

This, in turn, is fanning inflation fears and increasing the chances of a rate hike from the Federal Reserve by year-end.

On the earnings front, AT&T T.N beat estimates and added more wireless subscribers than analysts were expecting, sending its shares up 4.8%.

After the bell, Alphabet GOOGL.O and Tesla TSLA.O are slated to be the first of the so-called "Magnificent Seven" megacap companies to report second-quarter earnings and will give the first hints regarding the extent to which massive AI/data center outlays are beginning to show results.

IBM IBM.N is also scheduled to post quarterly results after last week's dour pre-announcement sent Big Blue's stock tumbling.

The S&P Software & Services index .SPLRCIS, which includes Big Blue, is a clear underperformer, dropping 1.8%.

Here's where things stood at 09:52 a.m. ET:

(Stephen Culp)

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EARLIER ON LIVE MARKETS:

OIL CLIMBS NEAR SIX-WEEK HIGHS, BUT CLOUDS GATHER NEAR RESISTANCE CLICK HERE

HALF-TIME IN EUROPE: RISING SOLIDLY CLICK HERE

THE RETURN OF DAILY TARIFF WORRIES? CLICK HERE

WALL STREET BANKS SIGNAL UPSIDE FOR EUROPEAN IBS CLICK HERE

CHIP BOUNCE FIZZLES OUT IN EUROPE, ENERGY UP, AIRBUS FLIES CLICK HERE

BEFORE THE BELL: AI RALLY FACES ALPHABET TEST AS OIL CLIMBS CLICK HERE

THE NEW AD FOR CHIPS? AN AI MODEL BREAKING BAD CLICK HERE