S&P, Nasdaq edge to fresh records as chip rally continues

S&P, Nasdaq edge to fresh records as chip rally continues Proactive uses images sourced from Shutterstock

4:20pm: Semiconductor stocks lead gains

US stocks finished Monday with modest gains, as investors continued piling into semiconductor names while keeping a close eye on rising tensions in the Middle East.

The Dow rose 95 points, or 0.2%, to close at 49,704, while the S&P 500 added 14 points, or 0.2%, to end at another record high of 7,413. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite edged up 27 points, or 0.1%, to 26,274, also notching a fresh closing record.

Chip stocks once again helped lead the market higher, extending a rally that has dominated much of the recent trading action as enthusiasm around artificial intelligence and data center demand remained firmly in place. Investors appeared willing to look past geopolitical uncertainty, even as oil prices moved higher after President Trump rejected Iran’s latest proposal aimed at ending the ongoing conflict in the region.

Energy stocks found support from the rise in crude prices, while gains elsewhere in the market were more restrained as traders balanced optimism around corporate earnings and AI-driven growth against concerns that higher energy costs could eventually feed back into inflation expectations.

Markets also looked ahead to a fresh round of corporate results due after the closing bell, with traders watching updates from AST SpaceMobile, Rigetti Computing and Hims & Hers Health for further clues on investor appetite across the space, quantum computing and healthcare technology sectors.

3:45pm: Proactive news headlines

Graphene Manufacturing Group Ltd (TSX-V:GMG, OTCQX:GMGMF) announced its THERMAL-XR graphene coating is being applied to hundreds of air conditioning units at two luxury residential tower projects on Australia’s Gold Coast Gunnison Copper Corp (TSX:GCU, OTCQB:GCUMF, FRA:3XS0) named current CFO Craig Hallworth as its next president and CEO as part of a planned leadership transition and broader executive reshuffle focused on advancing the Gunnison Copper Project NanoViricides (NYSE-A:NNVC) said its lead drug candidate NV-387 could help address infectious disease preparedness gaps following a deadly hantavirus outbreak, highlighting promising early-stage clinical and animal trial results Bit Digital Inc (NASDAQ:BTBT) appointed Daniel Kennedy as head of investor relations, adding a capital markets executive with experience across digital assets, fintech, and AI infrastructure sectors

2:40pm: Market movers

Dell Technologies Inc (NASDAQ:DELL) shares slipped after UBS downgraded the stock to Neutral from Buy, saying the strong AI-driven rally has largely priced in future gains despite continued demand for AI infrastructure Moderna Inc (NASDAQ:MRNA, XETRA:0QF) shares extended gains as investors reacted to reports of early-stage work on a hantavirus vaccine and ongoing progress across its broader pipeline Circle Internet Group (NYSE:CRCL) missed revenue expectations but beat earnings estimates while highlighting strong USDC transaction growth and new AI-focused services monday.com (NASDAQ:MNDY) shares climbed after the company topped first-quarter earnings and revenue forecasts and raised its full-year outlook Graphene Manufacturing Group Ltd (TSX-V:GMG, OTCQX:GMGMF) announced its THERMAL-XR graphene coating is being deployed on air conditioning units in large residential tower projects on Australia’s Gold Coast Gunnison Copper Corp (TSX:GCU, OTCQB:GCUMF, FRA:3XS0) named current CFO Craig Hallworth as its next CEO as part of a planned leadership transition to advance its flagship copper project Barrick Gold Corp. (TSX:ABX, NYSE:GOLD) shares jumped after the miner delivered a strong first quarter that beat expectations on earnings, production, and cash flow Bit Digital Inc (NASDAQ:BTBT) appointed Daniel Kennedy as head of investor relations, bringing experience across digital assets, fintech, and AI infrastructure

Story Continues

1:15pm: An Apple-Intel deal in the works?

Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL, XETRA:APC) and Intel Corp (NASDAQ:INTC, XETRA:INL) have reportedly reached a preliminary chipmaking agreement that Wedbush analysts see as “a clear positive for Intel,” while also raising questions about what it signals for Intel’s next-generation manufacturing roadmap.

The Wall Street Journal reported last week that Apple and Intel have reached a preliminary agreement under which Intel would manufacture some chips used in Apple devices.

Shares of Intel traded up almost 3% at about $128 on Monday, while Apple shares were flat at about $292.

12:10pm: Global markets remain calm

Stock markets are continuing to shrug off the Hormuz crisis, according to Chris Beauchamp, chief market analyst at online trading and investing platform IG, who added that global markets remain calm despite the ongoing US-Iran standoff.

“Trump’s rejection of Iran’s demands sets up the potential for another round of conflict in the region, but it seems nothing can shake investors from their conviction that a deal will be done at some point," Beauchamp noted.

"Oil prices have eased off the overnight highs, and while the Vix is higher, it remains within spitting distance of the recent lows – no one seems to have decided to panic just yet.”

11:00am: Week ahead

Markets are entering the new week focused on inflation data, AI momentum, corporate earnings, and geopolitics after major indexes rebounded toward record highs.

Investors are closely watching Tuesday’s April Consumer Price Index report for clues on the Federal Reserve’s interest rate path, with UBS forecasting headline CPI to rise 0.59% and core CPI 0.37% as energy, food, and housing costs remain elevated.

Meanwhile, AI chipmaker Cerebras Systems is expected to attract attention with a potential IPO that could raise up to $3.5 billion.

Although earnings season is slowing, results from Cisco Systems, Alibaba Group, Applied Materials, and JD.com may still shape sentiment around tech spending and Chinese consumer demand.

Markets are also monitoring geopolitical developments as U.S. President Donald Trump is expected to visit China for meetings with Chinese President Xi Jinping later this week.

10am: Flat start as predicted

Wall Street was essentially sitting on its hands as the week's trading started.

The Dow Jones was down 0.03% and the Nasdaq 0.003%, while the S&P 500 climbed just over nine points or 0.1% to 7,408.

Moderna topped the early risers, up 7.2% after two US citizens showed signs of the deadly hantavirus, for which the company said last week it was in the early-stage development of a vaccine.

Western Digital and Qualcomm were next, both over 6%.

Biggest fallers included retailers and cruise firms, including Dollar General, Target, Dollar Tree, Royal Caribbean Cruises and Carnival Corp.

8am: S&P 500 to start flat

A muted open for Wall Street has been predicted on Monday after oil prices jumped after President Trump dismissed Iran’s latest counter-proposal on a Middle East peace deal as "totally unacceptable".

Dow Jones futures were down 0.1%, while S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 futures were even flatter.

It could be that investors are reluctant to make large moves ahead Trump’s trip to China later this week.

WTI crude oil prices pushed 3% higher to $98.40 a barrel after hopes for renewed US-Iran negotiations faded over the weekend.

Last week there had been optimism that Washington and Tehran were close to agreeing a one-page framework for fresh talks.

Iran’s counter-offer reportedly demanded an end to the conflict across the region, the lifting of sanctions, reparations, sovereignty over the Strait of Hormuz and the release of frozen assets.

David Morrison, analyst at Trade Nation, said “it looks unlikely that much will happen” before Trump meets Chinese President Xi Jinping later this week.

Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had reiterated that the conflict was “far from over”, while Iran continued missile and drone attacks against Gulf neighbours.

European markets were mixed in early trade, with the FTSE 100 slightly firmer while the DAX and IBEX slipped and France’s CAC 40 fell more than 1%.

In Asia, South Korea’s semiconductor-heavy Kospi surged 4.3%, outperforming regional peers as chip stocks continued to rally, while the Nikkei 225 fell modestly and Chinese markets ended higher.

US equities ended last week strongly, extending a powerful technology-led rally. The S&P 500 climbed 2.3% over the week while the Nasdaq Composite jumped 4.4%, marking a sixth successive week of gains for both indices.

Semiconductor shares continued to dominate, with Micron Technology and AMD both up more than 130% since the end of March, while Intel has rallied 215% over the same period.

Corporate earnings have also continued to support sentiment. According to FactSet, 89% of S&P 500 companies have now reported results, with 84% beating earnings forecasts and 80% topping revenue expectations.

Year-on-year earnings growth is tracking just below 28%, which would mark the strongest pace since the rebound from pandemic shutdowns in late 2021.

Looking ahead, earnings are due from the likes of Simon Property, Oklo, Cisco, Tencent, Alibaba and Under Armour.

Key US data this week will centre around inflation, with CPI on Tuesday and PPI on Wednesday. Home sales are top of today's macro watchlist.

View Comments