On Thursday, the three major stock indices in the United States experienced a surge of over 0.8%, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 achieving record closing levels. This upswing was primarily driven by nonfarm payrolls, which increased by 147,000 in June—significantly surpassing the consensus estimate of 110,000. Additionally, the unemployment rate surprisingly dropped to 4.1%, reinforcing the perception of a strong and resilient economy.
In the technology sector, leaders such as Nvidia saw a 1.3% rise, and Synopsys enjoyed a 4.2% jump. These gains were fueled by robust earnings momentum driven by artificial intelligence, coupled with the White House's decision to lift export restrictions on chip-design software destined for China. The broader market sentiment was further uplifted by advancements in a trade agreement between the United States and Vietnam, as well as the imminent finalization of President Trump's $3.4 trillion tax-and-spending proposal by the House of Representatives.
Chip-design companies such as Cadence Design and Synopsys each experienced an approximate increase of 5%, while Datadog surged by 10%, anticipating its forthcoming inclusion in the S&P 500 index. As a reminder, markets will close early today and remain closed on Friday in observance of Independence Day.
