U.S. equities advanced on Thursday as a strong earnings outlook from Nvidia fueled a rally in technology shares, lifting the broader market. The S&P 500 rose 0.7%, but the equal-weight version of the index slipped 0.3%, signaling that advancing stocks were still outnumbered despite the tech-led gains.
Salesforce Inc. jumped 23% after issuing a robust revenue forecast and announcing an expanded partnership with Anthropic PBC. The tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 climbed 1.4%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.2%.
Adam Crisafulli, founder of Vital Knowledge, noted that "as is often the case when tech stocks surge, it's draining capital from the rest of the market."
Nvidia emerged as the top performer among large-cap tech names after projecting roughly 70% revenue growth for fiscal 2028. Its shares soared 8.7%, adding about $440 billion to its market capitalization.
Stephanie Guild, chief investment officer at Robinhood Markets, said in an interview that "the market is almost entirely dominated by the AI theme right now." She added that investors are focusing on free cash flow, given expectations that interest rates "won't decline anytime soon."
The optimistic outlook from Nvidia also lifted a broad range of AI-related stocks, including memory chip makers, semiconductor equipment firms, and optical communications companies such as Applied Optoelectronics Inc.
Traders continued to assess fresh clues on the Federal Reserve's rate path, with data showing a drop in weekly jobless claims and an increase in wholesale inventories. Meanwhile, the U.S. goods trade deficit widened in July to its highest level since early last year, driven by a sharp rise in capital equipment imports.
Fed Chair Warsh is scheduled to speak at the Jackson Hole Economic Symposium, where he may offer further insight into the central bank's inflation outlook. Kansas City Fed President Schmid said Thursday that with inflation still running above the 2% target, current interest rate levels are not restraining the economy. Chicago Fed President Goolsbee remarked that three-month inflation readings "don't look bad."
By the close, the S&P 500 was up 0.7% at 7,730.99 points; the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.2% to 53,569.44; the Nasdaq Composite advanced 1.6% to 26,541.35; the Nasdaq 100 rose 1.4% to 29,641.56; and the Russell 2000 added 0.3% to 3,014.339.
Comments