Microsoft and Meta Power Tech Rally On Wall Street Ahead of Nonfarm Payroll Report

Barry Adams
01 May, 2025
New York City

Stock market indexes on Wall Street advanced after Microsoft and Meta Platforms reported a big jump in earnings. 

The S&P 500 index advanced 1%, and the Nasdaq Composite gained 2% after Microsoft and Meta Platforms reported strong quarterly results. 

Meta, the parent company of Facebook and WhatsApp, lifted its capital spending to build data centers to power artificial intelligence applications.

The surge in revenue and earnings calmed market anxieties after the two leading companies confirmed rising investment in artificial intelligence infrastructure, despite the ongoing economic disruption brought on by the Trump administration's tariffs. 

Nvidia, Qualcomm, and AMD also advanced on the back of the investment plans of Microsoft and Meta Platforms. 

Investors are anxiously awaiting the release of nonfarm payroll data on Friday, as market participants are lowering expectations of net new job growth. 

The rise in initial weekly jobless claims was in focus as investors looked for the impact of the Trump administration's tariffs. 

Seasonally adjusted Initial jobless claims increased to 241,000 for the week ending on April 26, an increase of 18,000 from the previous period, the U.S. Department of Labor reported on Thursday.

The market advance on Wednesday trimmed losses in April, as investors sold stocks after the U.S. president launched his tariff campaign on April 2. 

A week later, benchmark indexes rebounded after the Trump administration paused tariffs for 90 days and scaled back on the introduction of steep tariffs on some key sectors and trade partners. 

However, market indexes turned lower after Donald Trump launched a vicious attack on the independence of the U.S. Federal Reserve and its chief and attempted to influence monetary policy to his liking. 

On April 8, the S&P 500 index plunged nearly 20% from the mid-February high, pushing the widely followed benchmark index into bear market territory. 

Over the last week, market sentiment rebounded after Alphabet, the parent company of Google search, reported sharply higher earnings, confirming that tech earnings are likely to increase despite the chaotic presidential administration. 

In April, the S&P 500 index declined 0.8%, and the Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.9%. 

 

Commodities, Currencies, Indexes, Yields

The S&P 500 index increased 1.0% to 5,624.94, the Nasdaq Composite edged up 2.0% to 17,794.71, and the Russell 2000 index was down 0.1% to 1,962.46.

The yield on 2-year Treasury notes edged lower to 3.59%, 10-year Treasury notes decreased to 4.15%, and 30-year Treasury bonds declined to 4.67%.

WTI crude oil decreased $0.32 to $57.88 a barrel, and natural gas prices edged higher by $0.04 to $3.36 a therm. unit.

Gold decreased by $47.82 to $3,224.85 an ounce, and silver edged down by $0.27 to $32.34.

The dollar index, which weighs the US currency against a basket of foreign currencies, increased by 0.43 to 99.90, and it traded at the lowest level since April 2022.

 

U.S. Stock Movers 

Microsoft Corp. jumped 8.7% to $429.80, and the software company reported better-than-expected quarterly results and revised higher its outlook. 

Meta Platforms Inc. jumped 6.4% to $584.10, and the parent company of Facebook and WhatsApp reported strong quarterly results and revised its capital expenditure to $72 billion from $64 billion. 

Nvidia advanced 4.5% to $113.79 after Meta Platforms lifted its capital expenditure to build data centers to process artificial intelligence applications. 

Tesla Inc traded up 0.5% to $113.79 after the Wall Street Journal reported that the company's board has initiated a search for a new chief executive, replacing Elon Musk. 

The company denied the report and said it is not looking for a new chief executive. 

General Motors jumped 3.5% to $46.80, and the vehicle maker lowered its annual earnings outlook in a regulatory filing. 

The company revised lower its annual net income attributable to shareholders to between $8.2 billion and $10.1 billion from its previous estimate between $11.2 billion and $12.5 billion.

In the regulatory filing, the company confirmed that Trump's tariffs will hit the company by between $4 billion and $5 billion.

McDonald's Corp. decreased 1.5% to $314.75, and the fast food chain operator reported weaker-than-expected revenue and comparable store sales. 

U.S. same-store sales declined 3.6% from a year ago, the largest decline since the second quarter of 2020.