US equity indexes rose this week as technology-led mega-cap gainers helped outweigh a hotter inflation print and the Trump administration's moves to choke Iran into a peace agreement.
* The S&P 500 closed at 7,711.76 on Friday, up from 7,674.37 a week ago. The Nasdaq Composite stood at about 26,402.42, compared with 26,180.46 a week earlier. The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended at 53,559.99, up from 53,277.01 at the end of last week.
* Nvidia's (NVDA) fiscal Q2 earnings and revenue more than doubled, and Q3 sales forecast beat estimates. The AI bellwether offered a surprisingly strong fiscal 2028 revenue outlook, while its gross margin guidance provided clarity amid rising memory costs, Morgan Stanley said in a note.
* Salesforce (CRM) posted higher fiscal Q2 adjusted earnings and revenue, and lifted its fiscal 2027 guidance.
* CrowdStrike (CRWD) reported surging fiscal Q2 adjusted earnings and sales, and raised its full-year net new annual recurring revenue outlook. This is a "blowout quarter as AI demand inflects across the platform," Truist Securities said.
* The headline personal consumption expenditure price index rose in July, following a slide in June, beating consensus. The annual headline rate exceeded forecast. The Fed's preferred core measure climbed in July, as expected and ahead of the June print. The annual core gauge was steady, as projected.
* The US is targeting aviation, shipping, technology, gold and digital assets to choke off Iran's economy. It is threatening secondary sanctions on countries that refuse to cut economic ties with Tehran. Iran pledged to fight back, expressing confidence that major trading partners would resist this pressure campaign.
* Federal Reserve Chairman Kevin Warsh said inflation is the more concerning part of the central bank's dual mandate, recommitting to the 2% inflation goal.
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