Who Were the Real Winners as Nvidia and Salesforce Boosted the New York Stock Market?

The New York Stock Exchange closed higher on the 27th, led by a rally in large technology stocks. The S&P 500 rose 0.7% to 7,730.99, the Dow climbed 0.2% to 53,569.44, and the Nasdaq jumped 1.6% to 26,541.35. Despite these gains, the majority of S&P 500 constituents fell, indicating that the indices were buoyed by a handful of big movers.

The driving forces behind the market were earnings reports from Nvidia and Salesforce. Nvidia beat expectations with quarterly revenue of $96.2 billion and non-GAAP EPS of $2.22, and it projected 70% revenue growth for next year—sending its stock up more than 8%. Salesforce, buoyed by AI-driven demand, delivered a “record quarter” and raised its full-year guidance, pushing its shares up over 20% and providing a lift to the Dow, S&P 500, and Nasdaq alike. In effect, investor fatigue toward AI spending has shifted back into optimism.

On the macro front, weekly initial jobless claims in the U.S. fell to 203,000 for the week ending the 22nd—below forecasts—reaffirming labor-market resilience. As a result, the 10-year Treasury yield ticked up to 4.67%. With inflation still elevated, the fiscal deficit widening, and the Treasury recently intervening in bond and currency markets, tension in the fixed-income space persists. All eyes now turn to the Jackson Hole symposium, which begins tomorrow, to see what tone Fed Chair Kevin Warsh will strike on inflation and the future path of interest rates.

Among global factors, renewed risks to the Strait of Hormuz stemming from the Iran conflict pushed Brent crude to the mid-$88 per barrel range and WTI to about $83—both up in the high 1% range. The rally in oil prices lifted energy stocks, helping defend the indices late in the session. That said, with oil prices and long-term yields both sitting at elevated levels, today’s technology-led rally may prove only a short-term bounce; volatility could reemerge at any time depending on Fed messaging and geopolitical developments, a point domestic investors would do well to remember.