Nasdaq, S&P 500 lifted by Nvidia’s forecast, investors eye speech by Fed’s Warsh

The technology-focused Nasdaq Composite index surged 1.57% on Thursday, closing at 26,540.78 points, after Nvidia announced a strong revenue forecast that reignited enthusiasm for the AI boom and propelled tech stocks. Nvidia's shares experienced a significant jump as investors reacted positively to the company's revenue growth projection, which exceeded market expectations.

Analysts believe that the AI trend shows no signs of slowing down, despite the increasing costs and capital requirements associated with its development. Morgan Stanley noted that Nvidia's revenue growth forecast of 70% for next year significantly surpassed the company's own estimate of 52%, with the consensus estimate closer to 40%.

The tech rally was further fueled by Salesforce and CrowdStrike, which both raised their revenue forecasts and outperformed earnings estimates, alleviating concerns that AI advancements might disrupt the traditional software industry. Meanwhile, other sectors, such as services, manufacturing, and utilities, continued to lag, underscoring the uneven impact of the AI boom on the broader market.

The S&P 500 Information Technology sector notched the highest gain among its 11 constituents, outperforming the broader market amid a generally weak performance across other sectors. Investors are now eagerly awaiting Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh's speech at the Jackson Hole symposium, where he is expected to provide insights into the central bank's stance on inflation and interest rates.