Analysts working at the Nasdaq.
Adam Jeffery | CNBC
The Nasdaq Composite rose to an all-time high Friday, surpassing its 2021 record, as investors bet that megacap technology stocks were the best way to play slowing inflation and a coming artificial intelligence boom.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq rose 0.8% to reach an all-time high, after recording a record-high close Thursday. The S&P 500 added 0.6% and also hit a new intraday high. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 72 points, or 0.2%.
Chipmaking giant Nvidia, which has led the tech rally by surging 260% over the last 12 months, was up another 3% Friday. Meta also jumped 2% for the day.
The Nasdaq was the last of the major U.S. stock benchmarks to reach a record close this year, when it achieved the milestone Thursday. AI has lifted mega-cap tech stocks – and the broader market – through 2023 and into this year. Slowing inflation, and the Federal Reserve’s ensuing pivot toward rate cuts forecasted for later in 2024, have also contributed the Nasdaq’s recovery from a difficult 2022.
The Nasdaq Composite over the last five years
“We’re seeing this big run up in tech because there’s a massive emphasis on what it might be — there’s so much emphasis on AI and this big sort-of redux of the late 90s,” said Jamie Cox, managing partner at Harris Financial Group.
“People [now] just completely disregard the rest of the market. And that’s generally does not turn out well,” Cox added.
On a weekly basis, the Nasdaq is up 1.3%, while the S&P 500, which also popped to a record close on Thursday, is tracking for a roughly 0.6% advance, while . This puts the two indexes on pace for their seventh positive week over the last eight. The 30-stock Dow is the laggard, down 0.2%.
Stocks gained even as troubled regional bank New York Community Bancorp declined 24% after the lender announced a leadership change and disclosed issues with its internal controls. The bank is already down more than 63% in 2024 with some investors concerned it is a sign of a wider real estate shakeout ahead.
Data released Thursday showed the personal consumption expenditures price index excluding food and energy, the Federal Reserve’s preferred gauge, rose 0.4% in January, in line with expectations.