US Stocks Hold Gains After FOMC Minutes

US stock indices held their traction on Wednesday as markets reconsidered the impact of AI disruption on the tech sector and maintained the outlook of rate cuts by the Federal Reserve. The Nasdaq 100 jumped 1%, while the S&P 500 added 0.5% and the Dow gained 200 points. Rate traders continued to expect multiple cuts by the Fed this year, but minutes from the Fed's last meeting indicated that many FOMC members cautioned that disinflation may be slow and uneven. Nvidia gained 2% after Meta stated it would use millions of Nvidia's chips in its new data center, recovering from some softness in recent sessions amid lingering skepticism on whether AI infrastructure expenditure will result in higher revenues. In turn, Amazon and Micron gained 2.5% and 7%, respectively, after major asset managers announced higher positions in the companies. On the other hand, Palo Alto Networks tanked up to 10% after releasing earnings forecasts that were below expectations.

US stock indices extended their gains on Wednesday, trimming the losses from the previous week as markets reconsidered the impact of AI disruption on the tech sector. The Nasdaq 100 jumped 1.2%, while the S&P 500 added 0.8% and the Dow gained 250 points. Investors had shown signs of skepticism on whether the surge in AI infrastructure expenditure would result in higher revenues, raising volatility in the sector's largest players. Nvidia gained nearly 3% to extend last session's respite after Meta stated it would use millions of Nvidia's chips in its new data center. In turn, Amazon and Micron gained 2.5% and 7%, respectively, after major asset managers announced higher positions in the companies. On the other hand, AMD inched down, while Palo Alto Networks tanked up to 10% after releasing earnings forecasts that were below expectations. The outlook of incoming rate cuts by the Federal Reserve this year also aided stocks ahead of the release of meeting minutes later today.

The Dow Jones Index is up by 220 points or 0.44 percent on Wednesday. Top gainers are Goldman Sachs (2.89%), Nvidia (2.03%) and Amazon (1.85%). Biggest losses came from 3M (-2.23%), Boeing (-1.19%) and P&G (-1.05%).