S&P500 and Dow Jones: US Indices Hold Gains as Defense Stocks Surge on Trump Budget

Major Indices Trade Mixed at Mid-Session After Record Highs

The major U.S. stock indexes are trading mixed at the mid-session on Thursday. The Dow and the S&P 500, which hit record highs the previous session, are holding on to marginal gains, while the Nasdaq struggles to turn positive.

At 18:00 GMT, the blue chip Dow Jones Industrial Average is trading 49330.03, up 333.95 or +0.68%, the benchmark S&P 500 is at 6925.90, up 4.97 or +0.07% and the tech-weighted Nasdaq Composite is down 110.70 at 23473.575 or -0.47%.

Energy and Consumer Sectors Lead; Tech Lags Behind

Nine out of 11 sectors in the S&P 500 Index are trading higher. At the top of the list is energy (+2.54%), followed by consumer staples (+2.23%), and consumer discretionary (+1.77%). Healthcare (-0.40%) and technology (-1.80%) are the only sectors posting a loss.

Alphabet Hits All-Time High on Upgrade and AI Expansion

Stocks making the biggest moves at the mid-session include Alphabet, which jumped and hit a new all-time high after an upgrade from Cantor Fitzgerald. The company also announced the addition of more Gemini AI features to Gmail on Thursday.

Data Storage Stocks Plunge on Profit-Taking

Sticking with technology, data storage stocks fell as investors continued to book profits following their recent rally. Western Digital and SanDisk dropped more than 9%. Seagate Technology tumbled 8%.

Applied Digital shares skyrocketed nearly 12% higher after the company posted an earnings and revenue beat in its fiscal quarter.

Defense Stocks Rally on Trump’s $1.5 Trillion Budget Proposal

Defense stocks were also in the news. They rallied after President Trump called for a defense budget of $1.5 trillion in 2027, saying in a Truth Social post he wanted to build a “Dream Military.” Lockheed Martin was a beneficiary of the news, advancing more than 4%, L3Harris Technologies rose 5% and Northrop Grumman gained more than 3%.

Energy and Industrials Post Notable Gains

Bloom Energy rose more than 13% after American Electric Power exercised an option to buy solid oxide fuel cells for about $2.65 billion.

Finally, Constellation Brands, maker of Corona and Modelo, added nearly 2% following third-quarter results.

Sector Leadership Remains Unclear as Market Searches for Direction

With several sectors the beneficiaries of positive headlines these first few days of 2026, investors are still trying to figure out which one wants to take the lead. Early winners are energy and healthcare.

Technical Outlook: S&P 500 Holds Uptrend Despite Selling Pressure

Looking at the charts, the March E-mini S&P 500 futures contract continues to hold on to its uptrend despite two days of selling pressure.

The first support is an uptrend line at 6907.50. This is followed by the 50-day moving average at 6885.25 and the main swing bottom at 6866.75. Resistance stands at 7006.75 to 7014.00. The trend line will move up to 6918.00 on Friday.

More Information in our Economic Calendar.