Cyprus Times

Wall Street: Dow Jones Rises on Defense Sector Jump

Published January 9, 2026, 08:11
Wall Street: Dow Jones Rises on Defense Sector Jump

Wall Street presented a mixed picture on Thursday, with the Dow Jones closing up 270 points, benefiting from the rise in the defense sector, while the Nasdaq declined as investors moved away from the technology sector. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.55% to 49,266.11 points, the S&P 500 recorded a marginal increase of 0.01% to 6,921.46 points, and the Nasdaq Composite fell 0.44% to 23,480.016 points. Shares of artificial intelligence companies, such as Nvidia and Oracle, as well as Apple, fell as investors moved away from the sector. However, Rob Haworth of U.S. Bank Asset Management believes that technology and artificial intelligence will remain important themes, but growth will depend on the emergence of use cases in various sectors, such as healthcare, robotics, and insurance. The defense sector was the most positive aspect of the day, rising after Donald Trump announced a defense budget of $1.5 trillion in 2027. Companies such as Northrop Grumman, Lockheed Martin, and Kratos Defense saw significant gains. This rise contrasts with the losses recorded on Wednesday, which were caused by falling oil prices after the announcement of Venezuelan oil deliveries to the US. Oil prices recovered on Thursday, with Brent and West Texas Intermediate futures rising about 3%. This recovery contributed to the improvement in market sentiment and the rise of the Dow Jones.