S&P 500 hits 7,000 for first time as Nvidia, Microsoft and AI boom drive market surge
AI and Big Tech earnings propel the surge, as rate cut expectations boost market confidence despite earlier jitters
The S&P 500 breached the 7,000-point mark for the first time on Wednesday, driven by unrelenting optimism over artificial intelligence and expectations of strong Big Tech earnings as well as monetary policy easing.
The benchmark index’s ascent between successive 1,000-point additions has quickened in recent years, reflecting mounting investor confidence in the US economy and corporate America.
It took about three years for the S&P 500 to rise to 5,000 points from 4,000, but only about nine months to jump from 5,000 to 6,000, which it reached in November 2024.
The index was last up 0.3 per cent at 6,999.71 points, heading for its sixth consecutive day of gains, its longest winning streak since October.
AI-linked optimism has been one of the key drivers of US markets, pushing tech giants including Nvidia, Microsoft and Alphabet higher. Technology stocks account for nearly 50 per cent of the S&P 500.
Expectations of interest rate cuts by the US Federal Reserve have also buoyed risk appetite, with traders betting on two 25-basis point reductions in 2026 after the central bank lowered interest rates thrice last year.