A rare, but entirely possible, scenario was playing out in the tech-heavy stock market. The S&P 500 index was off 0.2%, even though more than 400 of its component companies were gaining, according to Dow Jones Market Data.

Over the long run, the S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC) has delivered annualized total returns (including dividends) of 10.3% over its lifetime (since 1957), making it a phenomenal tool for compounding wealth over time. A 10.3% annual return can turn $10,000 into over $189,000 over 30 years, illustrating the power of compound returns.

The S&P 500 continued its "sideways-to-slightly-up" trajectory in the trading week ending Friday, 12 September 2025, although this week, it moved more slightly up than sideways.

(INTC) was up 25.5% in pre-market trading, and Bullish (BLSH) was up 9.3%.

Data shows September is the weakest month for stocks, with the S&P 500 averaging -0.6% since 1950 and the NASDAQ -0.9% since 1985.

Short sellers boosted their bets against the S&P 500 industrial sector stocks in June, with the S&P 500 Industrial ETF (NYSEARCA:XLI) gaining 3.3% higher last month.