U.S. stocks opened higher, driven by Nvidia's (NVDA, Financial) impressive earnings report with a 69% revenue spike, boosting tech stocks. A U.S. federal court's decision overturning several tariffs from the Trump era also lifted market sentiment. Despite a contraction in the first quarter GDP, increased expectations for Fed rate cuts supported the market. The Dow rose over 70 points (0.2%), the Nasdaq increased by nearly 230 points (1.2%), and the S&P 500 was up 0.7%. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index climbed almost 1.8% as Nvidia's shares jumped 5% on strong AI demand, despite a weak Chinese market.
The U.S. GDP declined by 0.2% in Q1, better than the initial -0.3% estimate, though consumer spending growth slowed. Market focus shifted to Fed policies and tech sector prospects. Ahead of market opening, S&P 500 futures rose 0.8%, Nasdaq 100 futures jumped 1.3%, and Dow futures slightly increased by 0.2%. In bond markets, the U.S. 2-year Treasury yield fell to 3.96%, and the 10-year yield decreased to 4.46%. The dollar weakened, reflecting heightened rate cut expectations.
Nvidia's strong performance emphasized its role in AI growth, while Best Buy (BBY) faced challenges due to tariff costs and weak consumer demand, lowering its revenue outlook, causing a pre-market share drop. United Airlines (UAL) and JetBlue (JBLU) formed a "Blue Sky" alliance to optimize New York operations.
