Finance

Fueled by fading expectations of tightening monetary policy and continued strength in tech, the Nasdaq Composite advanced 1.2% to achieve an intraday historic peak. While the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 managed Friday gains of 0.5% and 0.7% respectively, they still concluded the overall trading week in negative territory. Conversely, the tech-heavy index secured its third consecutive weekly gain.

Strong corporate performance provided an additional catalyst for the markets, highlighted by Micron Technology reporting an explosive 11-fold surge in quarterly profits. Driven by robust pricing dynamics and unrelenting artificial intelligence data center demand, the company's revenue nearly quadrupled year-over-year. The blockbuster results effectively buoyed investor confidence and fueled gains across the broader hardware and chipmaking landscape.

In contrast to the broader market gains, Nike shares fell sharply after the retail giant provided an unfavorable fiscal outlook. Although the company outpaced profit expectations for the recent quarter, its headline revenue underperformed analysts' projections due to persistent macro obstacles, including weaker commercial demand within the Chinese market.