Finance

Shares of Intel soared roughly 24% on Friday, representing its best daily performance since 1987. The company's standout first-quarter earnings report shattered long-standing valuation ceilings and reignited broad investor interest in chipmaker leadership.

While tech-heavy indexes surged, the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 0.16% to end the week at 49,230.71. The decline was fueled by weakness in cyclical sectors and financial stocks, snapping a three-week winning streak for the blue-chip index.

The yield on the 10-year U.S. Treasury note settled at approximately 4.31% as investors monitored ongoing tensions in the Middle East. While bond prices faced pressure from rising oil costs and inflation concerns, yields remained relatively range-bound compared to the previous two weeks.

As of late April 2026, Bitcoin continues to trade near $77,600, showing resilience despite a slight decline in overall market sentiment. Analysts are watching the $80,000 resistance zone as the next critical hurdle for the cryptocurrency, which currently remains in a technical bullish correction phase.

The S&P Global flash composite index rose to 52.0 in April 2026, signaling the strongest expansion in U.S. business activity in three months. Despite this growth, the labor market showed mixed signals as initial unemployment claims saw a marginal increase to 214,000 for the latest reporting week.