Wall St inches to higher close, AI fervor edges out Iran impasse

Wall St inches to higher close, AI fervor edges out Iran impasse

By Stephen Culp and Ragini Mathur

Mon May 11, 2026  

It was a day of very choppy trading but still closing modestly in the black though all three indexes were much higher earlier in the day, the Nasdaq up over 100 points around noon before declining and closing up a mere 27. Tech is once again dominating with AI taking the lead sufficiently to edge out war jitters with Trump rejecting the latest Iran peace proposal and oil once again spiking as a result.  

S&P 500 and Nasdaq notch records, boosted by AI and earnings optimism

S&P 500 and Nasdaq notch records, boosted by AI and earnings optimism

By Noel Randewich

Fri May 8, 2026  

Another day of boffo earnings from AI companies sent the tech indexes way up again for the S&P and Nasdaq to notch yet another day of new records and for both indexes to have now six straight weekly gains. And again, with the Q1 optimism, money flowed out of the safety of industrials to finance the continuing tech rally. Even so, even the Dow has now logged two straight weeks of gains. With nearly 90% of the S&P now reporting, Q1 earnings growth is coming in at 29% annualized with 83% beating forecasts.  

S&P 500 ends down as chip stocks give up gains

S&P 500 ends down as chip stocks give up gains

By Noel Randewich and Sruthi Shankar

Thu May 7, 2026  

Was it a day of profit-taking after the string of recent records or was it more jitters over the war? In any case, all the indexes retreated today after starting the day modestly in the black but then declining steadily all day. The exception was the Nasdaq which began the day well into the black, up some 200 by 11 a.m. before starting its own decline. This was all despite the relatively good news of a continuing strong Q1, progress in the Iran peace talks, unemployment benefits coming in lower than expected, and better than expected private payrolls.  

Stocks hit records on tech earnings, oil slide from prospect of Iran deal

Stocks hit records on tech earnings, oil slide from prospect of Iran deal

By Lawrence Delevingne and Harry Robertson

Wed May 5, 2026  

For the second day, more reports from Washington expressing recent progress with Iran for a deal to end the war shot all three indexes way up again with even more impressive 3-digit gains than yesterday. AI champion AMD coming in after yesterday’s bell with a forecast above estimates jumped the stock price a whopping 18.6%. Is this optimism justified? As today’s expert put it, “It’s difficult to say how close to a deal we might be. Market participants aren’t going to wait for confirmation of good news and are essentially now front-running a positive outcome.”  

S&P 500 and Nasdaq notch records as AI chip stocks surge

S&P 500 and Nasdaq notch records as AI chip stocks surge

By Noel Randewich and Utkarsh Hathi

Tue May 5, 2026  

With the White House reporting that the ceasefire with Iran is holding, yesterday’s concerns over who controls the Strait of Hormuz evaporated and all focus went back to Q1 which continues solid. Thus, it was a straight shot up on all the indexes with handsome 3-digit gains all around. Both tech indexes once again posted record highs and the S&P is poised for 28% in earnings growth, the highest quarterly growth in five years.  

S&P 500 falls from record high on Middle East worries

S&P 500 falls from record high on Middle East worries

By Noel Randewich and Niket Nishant

Mon May 4, 2026  

Two violent incidents in the Strait of Hormuz – a South Korean ship attacked while attempting entry and a U.S. Navy vessel forced by the Iranians to turn back – demonstrated loudly that Iran was still in complete control of the vital strait. This decisively shifted sentiment back towards the war, which investors have been trying to ignore, and all three indexes fell sharply, especially the Dow with a big 3-digit loss.  

S&P 500, Nasdaq end higher, notch weekly gains after earnings-heavy week

S&P 500, Nasdaq end higher, notch weekly gains after earnings-heavy week

By Stephen Culp and Niket Nishant

Fri May 1, 2026  

Q1 earnings reports, particularly in the tech sector, continued to come in strong on Friday, bolstering continuing confidence in AI as more companies begin claiming their huge AI investments are starting to pay off. As is usually the case, when tech gets exciting, money is taken from the safety of industrials so the Dow had a modestly down day while the S&P and Nasdaq took off. After ending a record-breaking month yesterday (the biggest in years), both the tech indexes registered a record-breaking week today with both hitting now six consecutive weekly advances, the longest winning streak in 1-1/2 years.