Technology shares lead the rally
Major US stock indexes reached record closing levels on Tuesday, with investor enthusiasm for artificial intelligence helping lift technology shares. The S&P 500 rose 0.58 percent, surpassing its previous peak from mid-August. The Nasdaq Composite, which has a heavier concentration of technology companies, gained 0.45 percent and also closed at a record.
Six of the seven largest US technology companies known as the “Magnificent Seven” ended higher. Amazon advanced 1.95 percent, while Microsoft and Tesla also posted gains. Meta moved lower, even though its shares had climbed more than 20 percent since the launch of its Muse AI assistant the previous month.
AI investment and market risks
Market strategist Keith Lerner of Truist Advisory Services described technology and AI as the rally’s dominant theme. The gains come amid multibillion-dollar spending by large cloud and technology companies on AI infrastructure and products. The S&P 500 was up 14 percent for 2026 at the time, while the Nasdaq had risen 18.78 percent.
The advance has continued despite pressure from higher oil prices and a sell-off in US government bonds linked in part to concerns about federal debt. Lerner said rising interest rates remained a key risk and cautioned that markets would not move steadily upward. His outlook is a market opinion, not a guarantee of future performance.
Asian indexes were lower in early Wednesday trading, while oil prices edged higher as traders assessed regional conflict risks. Those moves show that the US records have not removed wider economic uncertainty.
