[New York Stock Exchange] S&P 500, Nasdaq Hit New All-Time Highs Again on Strong Earnings and Consumer Data

Pepsi and United Post Strong Earnings
June Retail Sales Exceed Expectations
Jobless Claims Hit Three-Month Low

On July 17 (local time), the New York Stock Exchange closed higher across the board, buoyed by strong earnings from major companies and robust consumer data. Both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq indices hit new all-time highs for the second time in two days.

Reuters Yonhap News

On this day, the S&P 500 index, which is focused on large-cap stocks, closed at 6,297.36, up 33.66 points (0.54%) from the previous session, marking its ninth all-time high of the year. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index finished at 20,884.27, rising 153.78 points (0.74%), setting a new record high for the tenth time this year. Both indices reached new all-time highs again after just two days. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (Dow) also continued its upward trend, closing at 44,484.49, up 229.71 points (0.52%).

Corporate earnings that surpassed Wall Street expectations played a key role in boosting investor sentiment. PepsiCo, which reported its results on this day, posted better-than-expected performance, causing its share price to surge more than 7%. United Airlines also delivered a surprise earnings report, with its stock price rising by 3%.

Netflix, which had drawn significant market attention, posted second-quarter results that slightly exceeded forecasts. After the market closed, Netflix reported Q2 revenue of $11.08 billion and earnings per share (EPS) of $7.19, both surpassing market expectations. However, Netflix shares were down more than 1% in after-hours trading. This is attributed to the fact that the results did not significantly beat expectations and the stock failed to gain additional upward momentum.

Among mega-cap tech stocks with market capitalizations exceeding $1 trillion, Nvidia, Microsoft (MS), and Broadcom all rose to new record highs. Of these, Nvidia's market capitalization reached $4.2212 trillion, reaffirming its dominant position. Palantir, a U.S. defense industry company based on artificial intelligence (AI), also rose 2% on the day, once again closing at a record high.

As the earnings season kicked into full gear this week, 50 companies included in the S&P 500 have reported their quarterly results so far. According to FactSet, 88% of these companies have exceeded market expectations.

June retail sales data and weekly initial jobless claims, both released on this day, also exceeded market expectations and had a positive impact on investor sentiment. According to the U.S. Department of Commerce, retail sales in June increased by 0.6% from the previous month to $720.1 billion, recovering most of May's decline. This suggests that consumer sentiment has remained resilient despite price increases due to tariffs and policy uncertainty.

In addition, stable employment indicators helped ease investor concerns. Weekly initial jobless claims in the U.S. fell for the fifth consecutive week, hitting a three-month low. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, for the week ending July 12, the number of new claims, seasonally adjusted, was 221,000. This is a decrease of 7,000 from the previous week and below the market expectation of 235,000.

Brett Kenwell, a U.S. investment analyst at eToro, said, "It is very encouraging that retail sales data came out positive at the start of earnings season," adding, "If companies maintain an optimistic outlook on consumer spending, stock prices could rise further even after reaching record highs." He emphasized that the core of the U.S. economy is ultimately the 'consumer.'

In the foreign exchange market, the dollar strengthened against the yen, pound, and euro. This is interpreted as a result of President Donald Trump stating that the likelihood of dismissing Federal Reserve (Fed) Chair Jerome Powell is very low. However, President Trump added the caveat that Powell could be dismissed if he had to leave his position due to a "fraud" issue, and suggested the possibility of removal by raising concerns over the Fed's building remodeling expenses.

So far this week, the S&P 500 is up 0.6% on a weekly basis, the Dow is up 0.3%, and the Nasdaq has risen 1.5%, recording the highest increase among the major indices.