Investors decided the risk of a conflict with Syria is shrinking and sent stock prices higher.
The Dow Jones industrial average rose 135.54 points, or 0.9 percent, to 15,326.60 Wednesday. A big decline in Apple and other technology companies held back the Standard & Poor’s 500 index and the Nasdaq composite. The S&P 500 managed a small gain, its seventh in a row.
After a tough August, stocks have been rising in September. The S&P 500 is up 3.4 percent so far this month. Since September began, a U.S. strike on Syria has gone from seeming imminent to being something that may or may not ever happen.
The S&P 500 edged up 5.14 points, or 0.3 percent, to 1,689.13. The Nasdaq composite fell 4.01 points, or 0.1 percent, to 3,725.01.
Disappointment over Apple’s new iPhone lineup dragged down tech stocks. The two S&P 500 stocks with the biggest declines were Apple and the chip supplier Qualcomm, which makes the radio chip used in previous iPhones and is expected to make the chip used in the new iPhones.
Apple’s new iPhones struck many as only a modest advance from previous models. Investors fretted Apple is offering the phone’s new operating system for free to people who already own older iPhones, removing an incentive to buy the new model. Also, some analysts felt that Apple’s lowest-priced iPhone — $549 without a two-year cellphone contract — isn’t cheap enough to win many buyers in emerging markets.
There was a broad expectation that Apple would cut prices more and go for bigger market share. Apple fell $26.93, or 5.4 percent, at $467.71. Apple stock fell on Tuesday, too, after rising 11 percent in the month leading up to the announcement.
Qualcomm fell $2, or 2.9 percent, to $68.09. Apple makes up some 15 percent of Qualcomm revenue, Lam estimates.
Utilities and tech were the only two industry sectors in the S&P 500 that fell. The other eight rose, led by energy stocks.
Traders on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange observed a moment of silence shortly before trading began on the 12th anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to 2.92 percent from 2.97 percent a day earlier.
The dollar weakened slightly to 1.33 euro and 99.86 Japanese yen.
