Apple Adds $86 Billion in Market Value in One Day

U.S. stock markets ended Tuesday’s session mixed as renewed worries over lofty valuations in artificial intelligence-linked equities weighed on sentiment, even as investors tracked developments in Washington over efforts to end the country’s longest-ever government shutdown.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite slipped 0.2% following Monday’s sharp 2% rally, its strongest one-day gain in more than five months, while the S&P 500 edged up 0.2%, extending its winning streak to a third straight session. The Dow Jones Industrial Average led the major averages, climbing 1.2% or 559 points to a new record close.

Apple Inc. shares jumped 2.2% to a new all-time closing high, in a standout performance, adding an astonishing $86 billion to its market capitalization in a single session.

Media reports indicated the company will delay the launch of its next-generation iPhone Air, initially planned for fall 2026, amid slower-than-expected sales of current models. The iPhone Air, introduced in 2025 as a thinner and lighter version of Apple’s flagship device, was seen as a strategic refresh of the company’s core product lineup.

In October, Apple confirmed plans to make the iPhone Air available for pre-order in China, after receiving regulatory approval for eSIM services from local telecom operators.

Meanwhile, political attention in Washington turned to efforts to end the record-breaking government shutdown, now stretching beyond seven weeks. Members of the U.S. House of Representatives returned from a 53-day recess to vote on a measure that could reopen federal operations, with prediction markets such as Polymarket pricing in a high probability of a resolution this week.

Investor caution deepened after Japan’s SoftBank Group disclosed the sale of roughly $5.8 billion worth of Nvidia shares, sparking jitters across the AI sector that has fueled much of Wall Street’s recovery over the past two years.

The move came as traders recalibrated expectations around the sustainability of AI-related gains, which have propelled valuations of major tech firms to multi-year highs.