Dow Hits Historic Milestone as Stocks See Strongest Day Since May 2025
The US stock market staged a remarkable recovery on Friday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average surging to a record high of 50,115.67 for the first time ever. The index gained 2.5% and rose by 1,206 points, marking its best day since May 2025.
Tech stocks were instrumental in driving the rally, with chipmaker Nvidia jumping 7.8% and semiconductor company Broadcom climbing 7.1%. These gains helped to boost the S&P 500, which rallied 2% for its strongest day since May 2025. The Nasdaq composite also rose 2.2%.
The strong performance was attributed to hopes of continued spending by customers on artificial intelligence (AI), with Amazon CEO Andy Jassy announcing plans to invest $200 billion this year in AI-related initiatives. This announcement has sparked concerns about whether these investments will generate sufficient profits.
Despite the rally, the S&P 500 still fell to its third losing week in the last four, with software stocks suffering after AI firm Anthropic released free tools to automate services such as legal work.
Bitcoin, which had plummeted more than halfway below its record price set in October, steadied following a weekslong decline. The cryptocurrency climbed back above $70,000 and helped boost stocks of companies enmeshed in the crypto economy, including Robinhood Markets, Coinbase Global, and Strategy.
Consumer sentiment data also showed some improvement, with economists expressing optimism that inflation metrics will improve. However, concerns about a new Fed chair remain, and experts warn that investors may need to work through "jitters" before seeing further market appreciation.
As the Dow breaks new ground, analysts are urging caution, highlighting the ongoing uncertainty surrounding AI's impact on the market and the potential for future rate cuts from the Federal Reserve.
The US stock market staged a remarkable recovery on Friday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average surging to a record high of 50,115.67 for the first time ever. The index gained 2.5% and rose by 1,206 points, marking its best day since May 2025.
Tech stocks were instrumental in driving the rally, with chipmaker Nvidia jumping 7.8% and semiconductor company Broadcom climbing 7.1%. These gains helped to boost the S&P 500, which rallied 2% for its strongest day since May 2025. The Nasdaq composite also rose 2.2%.
The strong performance was attributed to hopes of continued spending by customers on artificial intelligence (AI), with Amazon CEO Andy Jassy announcing plans to invest $200 billion this year in AI-related initiatives. This announcement has sparked concerns about whether these investments will generate sufficient profits.
Despite the rally, the S&P 500 still fell to its third losing week in the last four, with software stocks suffering after AI firm Anthropic released free tools to automate services such as legal work.
Bitcoin, which had plummeted more than halfway below its record price set in October, steadied following a weekslong decline. The cryptocurrency climbed back above $70,000 and helped boost stocks of companies enmeshed in the crypto economy, including Robinhood Markets, Coinbase Global, and Strategy.
Consumer sentiment data also showed some improvement, with economists expressing optimism that inflation metrics will improve. However, concerns about a new Fed chair remain, and experts warn that investors may need to work through "jitters" before seeing further market appreciation.
As the Dow breaks new ground, analysts are urging caution, highlighting the ongoing uncertainty surrounding AI's impact on the market and the potential for future rate cuts from the Federal Reserve.