Dow Jones Hangs On While Memory Chips Take Another Beating

Taiwan Semiconductor's announcement that it will raise capital expenditures to $60-64 billion triggered a fourth consecutive day of losses across the semiconductor sector. The elevated capex forecast raised investor concerns about near-term profitability, hitting memory chip makers hardest. SK Hynix and Micron plummeted, dragging the Nasdaq and S&P 500 lower alongside TSM.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average held relatively stable as healthcare stocks rallied to offset tech weakness. UnitedHealth and Abbott Laboratories climbed on strong earnings reports, insulating the blue-chip index from the semiconductor selloff.

The divergence highlights rotation out of capital-intensive chipmakers as investors weigh whether current AI infrastructure spending will compress margins before revenue growth materializes. TSM's spending guidance—up from previous forecasts—signals continued heavy investment in advanced node capacity, but the market is pricing in profitability pressure rather than positioning benefits.