The S&P 500 closed at a record this week, but gains were concentrated in a handful of AI beneficiaries, obscuring growing fragility in the U.S. economy and financial markets. With less than a month to the midterm elections, a rally that favours Republicans could become a political liability for Trump. Consumer, travel, transportation, real estate and financial stocks have slipped; the median S&P 500 constituent is down roughly 4.3% over the past month. On Tuesday the index made a record while on

The S&P 500 closed at a record this week, but gains were concentrated in a handful of AI beneficiaries, obscuring growing fragility in the U.S. economy and financial markets. With less than a month to the midterm elections, a rally that favours Republicans could become a political liability for Trump. Consumer, travel, transportation, real estate and financial stocks have slipped; the median S&P 500 constituent is down roughly 4.3% over the past month. On Tuesday the index made a record while only 30% of constituents traded above their 50-day moving averages — narrower breadth than the 1998–2000 internet bubble period, when the most narrow record still had 41% above their 50-day averages. Strong performances from Meta, Microsoft, NVIDIA and the semiconductor sector accounted for most of the advance.