U.S. stocks capped a volatile week on a high note, led by big tech gains and strong corporate AI investment deals, offsetting pressure from >$100 crude oil and benchmark 10-year Treasury yields reaching 5.196% (19-year high).
Key Index Closes & Weekly Performance:
- S&P 500: +0.51% to 7,743.41 (+1.2% for the week).
- Nasdaq Composite: +0.48% to 27,068.72 (+2.0% for the week).
- Dow Jones Industrial Average: +0.93% to 51,828.62.
- Attractively Priced: S&P 500 trades under 19x forward earnings—its lowest valuation since 2023—supported by surging AI earnings expectations.
Major Stock & Sector Movers:
- Microsoft (+3.7%): Pushed 2026 YTD gains to +7% following new Copilot upgrades (coding tool & persistent AI agent).
- Akamai (+3.2%): Secured a $11.6 billion cloud services deal with AI leader Anthropic (granting Anthropic warrants for up to 5% of Akamai).
- Qualcomm (+4.0%) & Dell (+5.0%): Advanced sharply on strong hardware and AI spending data.
- Meta Platforms (-3.3%): Retracted slightly after a +13% weekly surge sparked by viral adoption of its Muse AI agent.
- People Inc. (+11.0%): Surged after reports confirmed MGM Resorts is weighing a takeover bid.
Macro & Geopolitical Backdrop:
- Fed Rate Expectations: CME FedWatch shows a 66% probability of a 25 bps rate hike in October.
- Energy & Bonds: Brent crude settled above $100/barrel, while U.S. 10-year yields reached 5.196% (+3.4 bps).
- Capital Goods Growth: August core capital goods orders beat estimates, driven by massive AI data center infrastructure capex.
A resilient finish for equity markets as institutional AI capital deployment overcomes macro interest rate headwinds! 📊💻🇺🇸