Stock prices on the New York Stock Exchange closed out their most recent winning week with further gains on Friday, pushing the stock market to new highs.
The S&P 500 rose 40.81 points, or 0.8%, to finish at 5,137.08, a day after posting an all-time high. It has been on a remarkable streak: it has risen in 16 of the past 18 weeks, thanks to enthusiasm over cooling inflation and the U.S. economy showing resilience in a big way.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 90.99 units, or 0.2%, to stand at 39,087.38. Technology stocks led the market, with the Nasdaq Composite rising 183.02 points, or 1.1%, to 16,274.94, a day after surpassing its previous record high set in 2021.
In the bond market, Treasury yields declined after reports on the U.S. manufacturing sector and consumer confidence came in less favorable than economists expected. The data bolstered bets that the Federal Reserve could start cutting interest rates in June, especially after a report Thursday showed that a key measure of inflation performed last month about as expected.
Dell Technologies helped boost the stock market after rising 31.6%. It posted higher earnings and revenue in the latest quarter than analysts expected, a period that highlighted demand for its artificial intelligence-optimized servers.
A seemingly endless increase in demand for artificial intelligence technology has helped catapult the stock over the past year. Dell’s stock has more than tripled in value over the past 12 months, while Nvidia’s has surged more than 260%.
NetApp advanced 18.2% after reporting better-than-expected results, and noted that it is seeing “good momentum in AI.” The data company also gave a current-quarter profit margin forecast that beat analysts’ expectations.
The mood was much gloomier in the banking sector, where New York Community Bancorp plunged 25.9%. The bank warned investors Thursday night that it had detected deficiencies in internal loan review caused by inefficiencies in supervision, risk assessment and monitoring.
Much attention has been focused on smaller regional banks after last year’s industry crisis led to the bankruptcy of several. One of them, Signature Bank, was absorbed by NYCB, which has resulted in the resulting bank facing stricter oversight amid tussles over real estate-linked lending.
In the bond market, Treasury yields plunged following the reports. The 10-year bond yield fell from 4.25% to 4.18% and from 4.28% just prior to the data release.