Stock Market Summary – January 19, 2026

The stock market has recently witnessed volatility due to a variety of factors. Major technology stocks such as Alphabet, IBM, and Microsoft are investing in the future of quantum computing, with smaller companies such as IonQ also making significant gains in the past year. However, these stocks have also experienced sharp declines recently, reflecting the sector’s volatility. Automaker company Stellantis saw its stocks drop by 43% following disappointing financial results, while Trump’s proposed tariffs have raised concerns among European luxury and auto stocks, which were seen to fall by over 2.5% recently.

Gold and silver prices are surging as investors seek safer assets amid geopolitical tensions and economic uncertainty fuelled by potential European tariffs proposed by President Trump. The Stoxx Europe 600 index fell 1.23%, with most sectors in negative territory, and luxury goods and automobile sectors were hit the hardest with falls of 3.15% and 2.22% respectively.

Smaller companies involved in quantum computing, namely IonQ, D-Wave Quantum, and Rigetti Computing, made significant strides in 2021 attracting investors’ attention. IonQ, valuing over $17 billion, soared 72% in the past 12 months but slumped 34% since mid-October.

Stellantis, conceived via a $52 billion merger of Fiat Chrysler and France-based Groupe PSA, has lost around 43% of its US shares value in the past five years. Jeep and Ram brands are areas of focus for the company’s sales turnaround plan. In the auto industry, shares for Volkswagen were seen to fall by 2.82%, Porsche by 2.68%, and BMW by 3.74%.

Amidst the turmoil, the European defense stocks notably rallied with the largest defense company on the continent, Rheinmetall, ending the trading day 1.08% higher. Meanwhile, the tech and aerospace giant Thales added 0.73% to end the trading day in positive figures.