Stock market today: Nasdaq soars to lead stocks higher as AI hopes run high

Tech stocks took center stage in US markets today, with the Nasdaq Composite leading the charge. Investors shifted their focus away from concerns about interest rates and instead honed in on the exciting developments in artificial intelligence (AI). Here’s a summary of today’s market action:

The S&P 500 gained nearly 1%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite surged by 1.2%

The Dow Jones Industrial Average also made a comeback, adding roughly 0.4% after Friday’s losses.

Over the past two weeks, stocks have experienced declines due to hotter-than-expected inflation and other data surprises, which affected faith in the Federal Reserve’s policy pivot.

All eyes are now on the Fed’s March meeting, starting Tuesday, to see if policymakers still expect to cut rates three times in 2024. Expectations are for the central bank to keep rates unchanged at a 23-year high in its decision on Wednesday.

Tech companies were on the rise, fueled by AI buzz. Chipmaker Nvidia kicked off its annual developer conference, and Alphabet shares climbed following reports that Apple is in talks to incorporate Google’s Gemini AI engine into its next iPhone.

Investors are eagerly awaiting the public market debut of Reddit on Thursday, which is said to be as much as five times oversubscribed. This IPO will provide insight into whether the market for new issues is reviving.

Meanwhile, the Bank of Japan is widely expected to abandon its negative-rate policy and raise rates on Tuesday, which was well-received by investors as Japan’s Nikkei jumped by 2%

In summary, the intersection of tech and AI continues to drive market optimism, and investors are closely monitoring key events and developments.