Nasdaq, S&P 500 hit record highs on Nvidia surge, strong quarterly earnings

The Nasdaq and S&P 500 hit record highs on Wednesday, boosted by gains from Nvidia and other Wall Street heavyweights ahead of inflation data and quarterly earnings reports due this week.

It was the fifth straight day that both indexes hit intraday record highs. The S&P 500 topped 5,600 for the first time, buoyed by rising expectations for a rate cut in September following comments from Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell. Powell expressed some confidence that inflation was headed toward 2% but remained cautious about declaring it permanent.

The semiconductor index rose to a record high after Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. reported strong quarterly revenue, bolstering the AI ​​narrative, according to Thomas Martin, senior portfolio manager at Globalt Investments. Other notable winners included Micron Technology, up nearly 4%, and Nvidia, up 2.3% to a three-week high. Apple shares rose 1.4%, approaching a market value of $3.6 trillion.

(Disclaimer: Based on information obtained from the agency.)