ROUNDUP/New York Stocks Close: Optimism in AI Drives Record Rally

NEW YORK (dpa-AFX) - The record rally on the US stock markets continued on Tuesday, with the Dow Jones Industrial, S&P 500, and Nasdaq 100 each breaking through round marks.

"The AI ​​party in New York continues," commented Christine Romar, Head of Europe at broker CMC Markets. Ahead of the quarterly reports from its most important members, the Nasdaq continues to rise. Investors don't want to miss out on another rally boost if Microsoft, Alphabet, and Meta once again exceed expectations on Wednesday, and Apple and Amazon once again on Thursday.

In addition, the US Federal Reserve is expected to cut interest rates by 0.25 percent. This decision is also due midweek.

The Dow jumped above 47,900 points for the first time at the start of trading. The most well-known Wall Street index closed the day up 0.34 percent at 47,706.37 points. The broad-based S&P 500 crossed the 6,900 point mark for the first time before closing up 0.23 percent at 6,890.89 points. The Nasdaq 100 surpassed the 26,000 point mark, gaining 0.74 percent to 26,012.16 points.

Economists expect the Fed to cut interest rates for the second time this year on Wednesday, citing increasing risks in the US labor market. However, the decision comes in a challenging environment, as hardly any economic data has been released recently due to the closure of numerous federal agencies in the wake of the budget dispute. "Even if the US labor market is likely to weaken further, the overall economy should not tip into recession in the near future," predicts portfolio manager Bruno Lamoral of the asset manager DPAM, who considers the stock market environment in the United States to be generally healthy.

The reporting season has also shown that the strength of US companies is not limited to the tech sector, he wrote. Positive earnings revisions are occurring far beyond this sector, which is why the stock market rally has been generally strong recently. With the exception of the consumer staples sector, all US sectors are currently trading above their 200-day moving average, which reflects their longer-term performance.

Among the individual stocks, numerous companies stood out with their news. UPS, Sherwin Williams, and Regeneron published better-than-expected quarterly reports or made statements about the full year that impressed the market. Shares of the parcel service UPS subsequently gained 8.0 percent. Shares of the paint and coatings manufacturer Sherwin led the Dow with a gain of 5.5 percent. Shares of the biotech company Regeneron, the strongest performer in the Nasdaq 100, rose nearly 12 percent.

Nvidia shares rose above $200 for the first time, reaching a record high of $203.15. They closed the day as the second-strongest performer in the Dow, up 5.0 percent. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang announced a series of new partnerships and dismissed concerns about an AI bubble. The Blackwell processor, Nvidia's flagship artificial intelligence accelerator, as well as the newer Rubin model, will drive unprecedented revenue growth in 2026, Huang said during a company presentation in Washington.

Skyworks Solutions not only had its quarterly results in the spotlight, but also announced an acquisition. The Apple supplier plans to merge with Qorvo, also an Apple supplier. Both companies are suffering from declining orders and growing competition in the smartphone chip market. Skyworks gained 5.8 percent. Qorvo, which had briefly jumped by more than 40 percent, ultimately gained 5.7 percent.

The iPhone manufacturer itself also came into focus that day, as Apple's market capitalization reached $4 trillion for the first time. This required only a 0.4 percent increase in share price. Demand for the iPhone 17 drove the price. The shares closed virtually unchanged.

Cameco's stock rose 23.4 percent. The company announced a strategic partnership with the U.S. government to accelerate the deployment of nuclear energy and AI in the United States./ck/he

--- By Claudia Müller, dpa-AFX ---

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