US Stocks Rise to New Record Highs
US stocks were sharply higher on Thursday (31/07) amid strong earnings results while markets parsed the latest economic data and trade policy developments. The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq 100 were 0.7% and 1% higher for fresh records, respectively, while the Dow added 100 points. Meta surged 11% on robust quarterly results and an upbeat outlook for Q3 sales. Microsoft jumped over 8% after beating earnings expectations and revealing that annual revenue from its Azure cloud division surpassed $75 billion.
Also, AbbVie jumped 4.5% after beating profit estimates and CVS surged 7% after raising its guidance. Still, Qualcomm sank 4% after its results, defying the strong momentum for the chip sector. In the meantime, personal spending and consumption edged higher in June while unemployment claims continued to show a robust labor market. Still, elevated PCE prices drove markets to pare bets of a Fed cut in September. Lastly equities received a boost on the trade front from lower tariffs on South Korea.(ayu)
Source: Trading Economics