Wall Street Surges to New Highs Fueled by Tech Gains

The Nasdaq and S&P 500 achieved record highs on Wednesday, driven by gains in Nvidia and other major Wall Street stocks, ahead of key inflation data and quarterly earnings reports due this week.

This marks the fifth consecutive day of intraday record highs for the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq. Investors’ expectations of an interest-rate cut in September increased following Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s comments earlier this week. Powell indicated that he is not prepared to conclude that inflation is sustainably moving down to 2%, although he expressed some confidence it might be.

The Philadelphia semiconductor index rose 2% to a record high after strong quarterly revenue from Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Micron Technology surged almost 4%, while Nvidia rose 2.3% to a three-week high and Apple climbed 1.4% to a record, approaching a $3.6 trillion market value.

Of the 11 S&P 500 sector indexes, 10 advanced, led by a 1.24% rise in information technology. The index was up 0.69% at 5,615.50 points, Nasdaq gained 0.99% to 18,610.88 points, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.48% at 39,482.11 points.

Upcoming US inflation data, including the Consumer Price Index and Producer Price Index, will be crucial. Probability for a 25-basis-point rate cut by September increased to 74%, according to CME’s FedWatch Tool. Earnings season, starting this week with major banks reporting on Friday, will test the sustainability of current stock valuations.

(Disclaimer: With inputs from agencies.)