S&P 500 Churns After $3.7 Trillion Rally to Record: Markets Wrap
(Bloomberg) — Wall Street’s blistering run wavered near all-time highs, with traders digesting the recent stock gains amid a slew of corporate earnings and hopes for a reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.
After a four-day rally that added $3.7 trillion to the S&P 500’s value, the gauge was little changed. Most megacaps fell, though Nvidia Corp. climbed 4%. Despite a strong quarterly report, SpaceX sank 12% as $101 billion worth of stock becomes available for trading Thursday.
In a volatile session, oil edged lower as Iran said it reached an agreement with Oman on a proposed route for shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, a potential step toward a reopening of the critical waterway for energy supplies.
The weight of the evidence continues to support giving the bull market in stocks the benefit of the doubt, even as we experience more bumps along the way, according to Keith Lerner at Truist Advisory Services Inc.
“Earnings remain our north star, the economy continues to show resilience, market participation has broadened, and valuation excesses have largely been worked off,” he said.
On the economic front, the US service sector expanded at a steady pace in July, but rising costs for services and materials continued to weigh on firms. Companies added fewer jobs than expected, suggesting some cooling in hiring momentum.
If confirmed in the government’s monthly jobs report on Friday, the recent employment trend suggests Federal Reserve officials can keep their focus on still-elevated prices.
Fed Bank of Minneapolis President Neel Kashkari told CNBC the central bank should start raising rates incrementally right now to curb inflation that remains too high.
Meantime, the Treasury retained its previous guidance for future debt issuance, signaling no change in note and bond auction sizes well into 2027 even as federal borrowing needs climb.
Corporate Highlights:
Advanced Micro Devices Inc. fell after the company gave an underwhelming sales outlook, a sign shareholders expected more of a return from the global expansion of AI data centers. Walt Disney Co.’s profit beat Wall Street estimates, driven by soaring income from its entertainment division and the resilience of its theme parks in California and Florida. Eli Lilly & Co. boosted its 2026 sales guidance after its weight-loss drug franchise performed far better than expected in the second quarter, helping to counter investor concerns that the obesity drug boom is starting to slow. Uber Technologies Inc. issued a bookings outlook that just met analyst estimates, compounding concerns from investors about the company’s ability to evolve in the robotaxi era. Booking Holdings Inc. maintained its full-year outlook for gross bookings and revenue due to resilient travel demand even as the Middle East conflict weighs on flight prices and capacity. Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
The S&P 500 rose 0.1% as of 2:05 p.m. New York time The Nasdaq 100 fell 0.3% The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.9% The MSCI World Index rose 0.3% Currencies
The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index fell 0.2% The euro rose 0.2% to $1.1558 The British pound rose 0.1% to $1.3471 The Japanese yen was little changed at 157.65 per dollar Cryptocurrencies
Bitcoin rose 0.6% to $64,702.4 Ether rose 2.3% to $1,918.04 Bonds
The yield on 10-year Treasuries was little changed at 4.61% Germany’s 10-year yield was little changed at 3.11% Britain’s 10-year yield was little changed at 4.89% Commodities
West Texas Intermediate crude fell 0.9% to $75.09 a barrel Spot gold rose 4.3% to $4,253.36 an ounce ©2026 Bloomberg L.P.
