Nasdaq Posts Strongest Day Since June as Microsoft Azure Revenue Surges
U.S. stocks rebounded sharply on Thursday following a steep sell-off the previous day, with technology leading the recovery due to strong AI-related revenue results from Microsoft. The Nasdaq Composite surged by 2.6%, marking its best single-day performance since mid-June, while the S&P 500 and Dow Jones also posted gains. Microsoft reported quarterly sales of $90 billion, exceeding expectations, with Azure cloud revenue growing 43% year-over-year in constant currency—well above forecasts—and projecting over $100 billion in fiscal 2026. This milestone validated Microsoft's AI investment strategy and boosted semiconductor stocks like Micron Technology (+15.7%) and SK Hynix ADR (+15.3%). However, not all tech companies fared well—Meta Platforms dropped nearly 9% after missing earnings expectations and issuing weak guidance, while Apple declined ahead of its own results.
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Topics: AI spending Microsoft earnings report Nasdaq Composite S&P 500 semiconductor stocks