US STOCKS-S&P 500, Nasdaq hit fresh records on AI boost, yields decline

Each of the three major US indexes notched their fourth straight month of gains in February in a rally largely fueled by growth prospects related to AI, which has also lifted semiconductor names. On Friday, shares of Nvidia climbed 3.73%, while those of its rival Advanced Micro Devices gained 4.82% to a record high.

U.S. stocks rose on Friday, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq hitting intraday records, as technology stocks rallied on continued AI-related enthusiasm, while a fall in Treasury yields provided further support.

After closing at a record high on Thursday, the Nasdaq set a fresh intraday record, surpassing its prior peak of 16,212.23 set in November 2021, led by artificial intelligence (AI) related names such as Nvidia and Meta Platforms. Each of the three major US indexes notched their fourth straight month of gains in February in a rally largely fueled by growth prospects related to AI, which has also lifted semiconductor names.

On Friday, shares of Nvidia climbed 3.73%, while those of its rival Advanced Micro Devices gained 4.82% to a record high. The broader Philadelphia semiconductor index jumped 4.56% to a record. Markets have also been supported by a resilient economy, as investors have tried to gauge the timing of the first interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve, with expectations currently targeting June.

"The first cut will be in June in our opinion and they'll cut three times by the end of the year," said Sam Stovall, chief investment strategist at CFRA Research in New York. "But that's good because then we're gradually coming off of the higher interest rate cycle and we're not in need of cutting rates aggressively."

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 96.00 points, or 0.25%, to 39,091.93, the S&P 500 gained 40.69 points, or 0.80%, to 5,136.94 and the Nasdaq Composite gained 200.76 points, or 1.25%, to 16,292.68. Despite a strong services sector and tight labor market, the economy still shows pockets of weakness, notably in the manufacturing sector, although

data on Friday did indicate some signs of a possible rebound.

That helped push U.S. Treasury yields lower, with the two-year note yield falling to as low as 4.525%. Investors also digested comments from Fed Governor Chris Waller, who said the central bank's upcoming decisions about the ultimate size of its balance sheet has no bearing on its inflation fight.

Meanwhile, Richmond Fed President Thomas Barkin said it is too soon to predict when the Fed will be able to begin cutting rates. The S&P 500 tech index was the top performer of the 11 major sectors, with a 1.76% rise.

Among major movers, New York Community Bancorp slumped 24.11% after the regional lender said it had found "material weaknesses" in internal controls related to its loan review and revised its fourth-quarter loss to 10 times above the previously stated numbers. The KBW regional banking index dropped 1.36%.

Dell Technologies surged 29.93% after the personal computer maker forecast annual revenue and profit above Wall Street estimates Gains on the Dow were curbed by a 1.28% drop in Boeing after a report said the planemaker was in talks to buy supplier Spirit AeroSystems.

Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 2.11-to-1 ratio on the NYSE and by a 1.68-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq. The S&P 500 posted 81 new 52-week highs and two new lows while the Nasdaq recorded 334 new highs and 77 new lows.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)