Analyst pointing the chart.
The Nasdaq surged over 2.5% Thursday, boosted by strong earnings from Microsoft and Meta. Microsoft jumped 9% after reporting an 18% rise in earnings and strong cloud sales, pushing the stock back above key technical levels. Meta also posted solid results, rising around 6%.
The S&P 500 gained 1.4%, and the Dow rose 0.9% as investor momentum continued from last month’s rally. Small caps climbed too, with the Russell 2000 up 1.1%.
Meanwhile, jobless claims rose more than expected to 241,000, adding to concerns after weak private payroll data earlier in the week. Investors now await Friday’s April jobs report.
Treasury yields stayed flat around 4.18%, and oil rebounded 1.2% to nearly $59 per barrel.
In other news, OSI Systems briefly broke out after beating earnings forecasts, but faded by midday. ServiceTitan continued to slide, marking its fifth straight day of losses.
Overall, strong tech earnings outweighed weak economic data to lift markets.
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