Key Takeaways
- S&P 500 nears record high with 0.6% gain, on track for sixth straight winning month
- Amazon surges 11.6% on blockbuster earnings, AWS growth reaccelerates
- Apple beats profit expectations, driving tech rally alongside Reddit and Netflix
- Asian markets mixed as China factory activity shrinks, Japan’s Nikkei hits record
Wall Street marched toward record highs on Friday, powered by Amazon’s blockbuster earnings that reignited the Big Tech rally. The S&P 500 climbed 0.6%, recovering most of Thursday’s losses and approaching its all-time peak set earlier this week.
The benchmark index is headed for its third consecutive weekly gain and sixth straight monthly advance—its longest winning streak since 2021. The Dow Jones added 37 points (0.1%) while the Nasdaq Composite jumped 1.3% in early trading.
Big Tech Powers Market Rally
Amazon skyrocketed 11.6% after reporting quarterly profits that smashed estimates. CEO Andy Jassy announced that Amazon Web Services growth has “reaccelerated to a pace it hasn’t seen since 2022,” signaling strong cloud demand recovery.
Apple edged up 0.3% after beating profit expectations, driven by robust iPhone and services revenue. Together, Amazon and Apple command over 10% of the S&P 500’s total weight with a combined market value of approximately $6.4 trillion, making them crucial market drivers.
Broader Tech Momentum
Other tech stocks joined the rally: Reddit shares surged 14.7% on stronger-than-expected earnings, while Coinbase gained 3.2%. Netflix advanced 1.9% after announcing a 10-for-1 stock split to make shares more accessible to investors.
However, AbbVie slipped 3.7% despite beating forecasts, as analysts noted smaller profit surprises compared to previous quarters.
Global Markets and Fed Outlook
Overseas markets showed mixed performance. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng dropped 1.4% and Shanghai’s index fell 0.8% as China’s factory activity contracted for the seventh consecutive month. Meanwhile, Japan’s Nikkei jumped 2.1% to a record high on stronger industrial output data.
In bond markets, the 10-year US Treasury yield eased to 4.08% from 4.11%. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell tempered expectations, cautioning that another rate cut in December “is not a foregone conclusion—far from it,” maintaining uncertainty about monetary policy direction.
