LIVE MARKETS-The chips are down: Tech dips ahead of Alphabet, Tesla earnings

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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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