Finance

Fueled by diminishing expectations of upcoming monetary tightening, the technology sector spearheaded Friday's market upswing. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite surged 1.2% to close at 27,190.86, recording an intraday historic peak and capping off its third consecutive winning week. Artificial intelligence bellwether Nvidia notably boosted the index after briefly touching a fresh all-time high of $237.88 during the session.

Crude oil benchmarks finished the week lower despite heightened geopolitical tension in the Middle East and the deployment of 9,000 U.S. troops. Downward pressure on energy prices materialized after G7 and European leaders agreed to immediately release 100 million barrels of crude and diesel from emergency stockpiles. Brent crude futures settled near the $100 per barrel mark, losing roughly 1.5% over the course of the week.

Shares of athletic apparel giant Nike declined sharply following the release of its quarterly financial performance. Although the company delivered a higher profit than anticipated, its overall revenue contraction was deeper than projected, and management warned of an even steeper slide in sales for the full fiscal year. Conversely, chipmaker Micron Technology recorded a blowout quarter with an eleven-fold increase in earnings per share, fueled by insatiable data center and artificial intelligence demand.