The United States stock market has hit an all-time high as excitement around artificial intelligence continues to fuel a buying frenzy on Wall Street. The S&P 500, the benchmark stock index, closed 0.58 percent higher on Tuesday, topping the previous peak reached in mid-August. The Nasdaq Composite, which is more heavily weighted towards tech stocks, also hit a record high, finishing up 0.45 percent.
Tech stocks were among the top performers, with each of the “Magnificent Seven” apart from Meta closing higher. Amazon led the pack with a 1.95 percent gain, followed by Microsoft and Tesla, which rose 0.78 percent and 0.51 percent, respectively. Apple and Alphabet both rose 0.22 percent, while Nvidia gained 0.14 percent.
Meta, which has risen more than 20 percent since the launch last month of its new AI assistant, Muse, fell 0.41 percent. Other big movers in tech included Marvell Technology, which rose 5.81 percent, and Cisco, which gained 4.54 percent. Keith Lerner, chief investment officer and chief market strategist at Truist Advisory Services in Atlanta, Georgia, said the market rally should be seen as a “technology and AI surge”.
Despite the energy crunch caused by the US-Israeli war on Iran and a sell-off of US government bonds partly driven by ballooning government debt, the market is well on track to record its fourth consecutive year of double-digit returns. The S&P 500 has risen 14 percent so far in 2026, while the Nasdaq Composite is up 18.78 percent. Lerner at Truist Advisory said the market rally had the potential to continue through the end of 2026 given historical trends and expectations for strong corporate earnings.
Asian stock markets fell on Wednesday, with key indexes in Japan, South Korea and Hong Kong slumping in morning trading. The Nikkei 225 in Tokyo, Kospi in Seoul and Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong were down 0.79 percent, 1.36 percent and 0.71 percent, respectively, as of . Oil prices, which have been elevated since the start of the war on Iran, rose on Wednesday as traders weighed the fallout of fighting between forces aligned with Yemen’s internationally recognised government and the Iran-aligned Houthis.
Brent crude futures for December delivery stood at $101.45 a barrel as of , up 0.87 percent.
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