The S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 are now on track for an eighth straight weekly gain, the longest winning streak since 2023, as diplomatic signals on Iran helped cool oil and pulled Treasury yields lower for a third consecutive session.
The S&P 500 climbed 0.4% to 7,477 by 11 a.m. ET, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 324 points, or 0.6%, to a record 50,610, led by Merck & Co. Inc. (NYSE:MRK),+4.7%; Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT), +3.7% and IBM (NYSE:IBM), +2.8%. The latter is on track for its best week in over two decades.
The Nasdaq 100 added 0.2% to 29,417, dragged by a soft session within Magnificent Seven stocks. NVIDIA Corp. (NASDAQ:NVDA) slipped 1.2% as traders continued to digest a first-quarter report that beat headline estimates but delivered revenue guidance that did not exceed the upper end of analyst expectations. Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ:MSFT) and Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) each slipped less than 0.5%.
The Russell 2000 outperformed, rising 0.9% as small caps caught a tailwind from falling yields.
The University of Michigan consumer sentiment index was revised to a record low 44.8 in May from a preliminary 48.2, a third straight monthly drop blamed on Hormuz-driven gasoline costs.
One-year inflation expectations were nudged up to 4.8% and five-year expectations to 3.9%, the highest in seven months, keeping a hawkish overlay on every Fed headline.
The bond market now assigns a 82% ...
