Wall Street witnessed a strong rally on June 29th, with major US indices rebounding from recent volatility. According to Goodreturns, the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 306.63 points or 0.6% to close at 52,182.74, while the S&P 500 rose by 86.41 points or 1.2% to end at 7,440.43. The Nasdaq Composite surged by 522.53 points or 2.07% to close at 25,820.14, recovering from a crash of 1,500 points over four consecutive days. The rally was driven by heavyweight technology stocks, with the Nasdaq leading gains as investors responded positively to artificial intelligence-related developments. As per Goodreturns, Nasdaq 100 outperformed with 656.51 points or 2.25% upside to finish at 29,774.75, while US stock futures traded sideways on Tuesday as easing geopolitical tensions supported equities.
The market surge was primarily led by companies linked to artificial intelligence following major semiconductor investment announcements. As reported by The Times of India, Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix announced plans to invest about $518 billion in a new semiconductor manufacturing hub in South Korea. This project is specifically aimed at capitalizing on rising demand for AI technology. Following the announcement, Nvidia rose 1.2%, Broadcom added 2.7%, and Applied Materials climbed 3.9%. AI-related stocks have experienced significant volatility in recent weeks, with the sector initially soaring on AI enthusiasm before coming under pressure due to concerns about valuations not justifying rapid price increases.
The semiconductor sector experienced a significant rally, with Nvidia advancing 2.52%, Advanced Micro Devices rallying 7.60%, and Intel gaining 5.91%. According to Upstox Securities, the VanEck Semiconductor ETF surged 3.78%, demonstrating strong investor confidence in the chip sector. This represents a notable turnaround from earlier volatility when technology stocks came under heavy selling pressure on Tuesday, putting the Nasdaq 100 on track to lose more than $1 trillion in market value. The sector's recovery was fueled by Micron Technology's stellar financial results and optimistic outlook, with the company's strong performance and forecast for robust demand, particularly in AI-driven sectors, boosting investor confidence.
The rally was fueled by strong buying in major tech stocks, with Elon Musk's SpaceX zooming by 7.15% to close at $164.19, gaining $144.33 billion overnight according to Goodreturns. Alphabet emerged as the biggest winner with gains of $202.56 billion in market value, rising by nearly 5% to $351.28 after debuting as a Dow component. Tesla stock was up by 8.5%, followed by TSMC and Amazon which advanced by 5.3% and 3.20% respectively. The largest stock globally, Nvidia, rallied by 1.3% during the session. SpaceX's remarkable performance continues to add significant weight to the Nasdaq 100 index, with the company having surpassed a valuation of $2 trillion after selling shares on the Nasdaq for the first time earlier this month.
Beyond technology, Comcast emerged as one of the biggest gainers, jumping 9.8% after announcing plans to separate its NBCUniversal media business, including theme parks, as well as Sky, from its broadband and wireless operations. As reported by The Times of India, even after Monday's rally, the stock had been down 17.3% for the year before this announcement. The corporate restructuring news provided significant support to the broader market sentiment. Markets moved higher despite an increase in crude oil prices, with Brent crude trading in the $70-71 per barrel range following the latest military exchanges between the United States and Iran over the weekend. The yield on the benchmark 10-year US treasury note slipped slightly to 4.37% from 4.38% on Friday, down from 4.56% earlier this month. Gold straddled the $4000-level for the past three sessions, rising to $4096 ahead of the weekend, though it failed to close above the five-day moving average.
