AI Drives Tech Rally, Outweighing US Debt Concerns: Markets Wrap

US stocks rose Thursday as a rally in companies linked to the frenzy in artificial intelligence outweighed broader market concerns including a US debt default.

(Bloomberg) — US stocks rose Thursday as a rally in companies linked to the frenzy in artificial intelligence outweighed broader market concerns including a US debt default.

The S&P 500 gained 0.9% while the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 added 2.5% after a bullish sales forecast from Nvidia Corp. ignited gains in the technology sector. 

Shares of Nvidia soared 24% after the company’s forecast related to AI surprised even the most optimistic analysts on Wall Street, propelling the company to the cusp of a $1 trillion market value. The AI craze also continued afterhours, when Marvell Technology Inc. projected 2024 revenue from the technology will at least double from a year ago. 

The gains are another sign that investors are willing to pile into promising tech stocks, despite the growing worries about China’s economy and a potentially catastrophic US debt default. Fitch Ratings warned that the US’s AAA rating is under threat, though it still expects politicians will reach an agreement before time runs out. 

“Between the debt ceiling and AI, everything else is kind of dwarfed by the magnitude of those two things,” said Louise Goudy Willmering, partner at Crewe Advisors LLC.

Treasury-bill yields slated to mature early next month edged higher as investors continued to demand a premium on securities seen most at risk of non-payment if the government exhausts its borrowing capacity. The wrangling in Washington adds to the risks assessed by Federal Reserve officials as they consider pausing interest rate increases. 

Traders are now fully pricing in another quarter-point hike within the next two policy meetings after the release of mixed data on Thursday, including a higher revised first-quarter GDP and fewer-than-expected jobless claims.

Read more: Nvidia Forecast Shows How AI Frenzy Is Transforming Chip Sector

“Nvidia was last night’s good surprise,” said Gilles Guibout, head of European equity strategies at Axa Investment Managers. “But more broadly, there are few reasons for the market to keep rising: interest rates are not going down, global economic growth isn’t rebounding, full-year earnings are seen flat, and stock valuations are already at a decent level.”

In corporate news, Dish Network Corp. gained 7.1% on a report of talks to offer mobile plans on Amazon. Snowflake Inc. dropped 17% after the cloud-software company cut its product revenue guidance for the full year. And Costco Wholesale Corp. fell in postmarket trading as third-quarter sales fell short of estimates.

Elsewhere, in Asian markets, sentiment continued to worsen. The Hang Seng Index shed 1.9% on the day and the yuan broke through the closely-watched 7-per-dollar level.

The key worry for investors is that China’s economy is losing momentum and there are persistent financial troubles in the real estate sector. Recent data suggest GDP growth this year will be closer to the government’s target of about 5%, contrary to expectations of a large overshoot formed earlier in the year.

Meanwhile, traders added to bets the Bank of England will keep raising interest rates after an unexpectedly strong reading of UK inflation on Wednesday. Money markets are now pricing more than 100 basis points of additional tightening by December. The Europe Stoxx 600 ended the day 0.3% lower.

Key events this week:

  • Interest rate decisions in Turkey, South Africa, Indonesia, South Korea, Thursday
  • Tokyo CPI, Friday
  • US consumer income, wholesale inventories, durable goods, University of Michigan consumer sentiment, Friday

Some of the main moves in markets:

Stocks

  • The S&P 500 rose 0.9% as of 4 p.m. New York time
  • The Nasdaq 100 rose 2.5%
  • The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.1%
  • The MSCI World index fell 1%

Currencies

  • The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index rose 0.3%
  • The euro fell 0.3% to $1.0721
  • The British pound fell 0.4% to $1.2318
  • The Japanese yen fell 0.5% to 140.17 per dollar

Cryptocurrencies

  • Bitcoin rose 0.3% to $26,474.68
  • Ether rose 0.3% to $1,809.68

Bonds

  • The yield on 10-year Treasuries advanced seven basis points to 3.81%
  • Germany’s 10-year yield advanced five basis points to 2.52%
  • Britain’s 10-year yield advanced 16 basis points to 4.37%

Commodities

  • West Texas Intermediate crude fell 3.2% to $71.99 a barrel
  • Gold futures fell 1.2% to $1,959.40 an ounce

This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation.

 

–With assistance from Georgina McKay.

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