Amazon Shares Soar After Strong Earnings
Over the past six months, the Nasdaq has jumped 35%, the S&P 500 has advanced 22%, and the Dow Jones has climbed 16.85%.
Quick overview
- Wall Street's main indexes are rebounding after their largest decline since October 10, driven by positive forecasts from Apple and Amazon.
- The S&P 500 is up 0.49%, the Nasdaq Composite has gained 1.02%, and the Dow Jones is rising 0.22% in early trading.
- Amazon's shares surged 11.7% due to strong quarterly sales projections, while Apple forecasts stronger iPhone sales despite a slight stock decline.
- European markets are down following mixed inflation data, while Asian markets show mixed results with Japan's Nikkei 225 rising significantly.
The leading stock indexes in New York are looking to recover after recording their steepest declines since October 10 on Thursday.
Wall Street’s main benchmarks were trading in positive territory during Friday’s premarket session, as upbeat forecasts from Apple and Amazon—released after Thursday’s close—help restore investor confidence following the biggest one-day drop in more than three weeks.
In early trading, the S&P 500, which tracks the largest companies listed on the New York Stock Exchange, is up 0.49%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite gains 1.02%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average also moves higher, rising 0.22%.
As the year enters its final stretch, Wall Street’s key indexes are set to close 2025 with broad gains and at record highs. Over the past six months, the Nasdaq has jumped 35%, the S&P 500 has advanced 22%, and the Dow Jones has climbed 16.85%.
Tech leads the market rebound
Amazon shares are surging 11.7% after the company projected quarterly sales above estimates, driven by accelerating growth in its cloud services unit—its fastest pace in nearly three years.
Apple’s stock, meanwhile, is down just 0.22%, despite forecasting stronger-than-expected iPhone sales and total revenue for the holiday quarter.
With six of the “Magnificent Seven” companies—excluding Nvidia—having already reported their quarterly results, investors now have a clearer view of how aggressively major tech firms are investing in artificial intelligence. The group, which makes up roughly 35% of the S&P 500’s total weight, plans to spend billions on chips and data centers to fuel its AI ambitions.
However, this wave of spending rattled markets on Thursday, amid growing concerns that the AI boom could turn into a bubble. Both the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq posted their sharpest daily declines since October 10, with the benchmark index closing at its lowest level in more than a week. Microsoft and Meta led the losses after forecasting higher AI-related expenses, raising doubts about whether those investments can sustain long-term growth.
Asian and European markets
In Europe, the Euro Stoxx 50 is down 0.78%. The key data point on the continent was the latest Eurozone inflation report: headline inflation matched expectations at 2.1% year-over-year in October, but core inflation came in slightly above forecasts at 2.4% versus the 2.3% expected.
Losses were also widespread across major European indexes: Germany’s DAX fell 0.77%, France’s CAC 40 slipped 0.56%, and the UK’s FTSE 100 retreated 0.43%.
In Asia, markets were mixed. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index dropped 1.43%, while the Shanghai Composite fell 0.81%. In contrast, Japan’s Nikkei 225 surged 2.25%, supported by rising inflation and growing expectations that the Bank of Japan may raise interest rates.
- Check out our free forex signals
- Follow the top economic events on FX Leaders economic calendar
- Trade better, discover more Forex Trading Strategies
- Open a FREE Trading Account
