United States benchmark averages finished Wednesday’s session (Thursday AEST) mixed, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq supported by upbeat quarterly results from CoreWeave and other AI infrastructure firms, while mild inflation data reinforced expectations that the U.S. Federal Reserve will hold interest rates steady in September.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 21.6 points, or 0.04%, to 53,770.3. The S&P 500 climbed 20.3 points, or 0.3%, to 7,748.5, while the Nasdaq gained 143.0 points, or 0.5%, to 26,588.5.
CoreWeave surged 19% after the AI cloud company raised its annual capital spending forecast and topped second-quarter earnings estimates.
Data centre operators also advanced, with IREN gaining almost 10% and Applied Digital rising 4.9%.
Nebius Group jumped 34% after its second-quarter results beat expectations, while Super Micro Computer surged 19% after the AI server maker forecast fiscal 2027 revenue above Wall Street expectations.
Chipmakers also gained, with Nvidia rising 3% and Micron Technology adding 4.9%.
U.S. consumer prices barely increased in July as gasoline costs declined for a second consecutive month, while underlying inflation remained benign. The data further reduced expectations of an interest rate hike from the Federal Reserve next month.
Traders are now pricing in a 59.9% chance of the Fed holding rates at its September meeting, according to the CME Group FedWatch Tool. Before the July inflation data was released, bets were split between a hike and no change.
Meanwhile, the conflict between the U.S. and Iran remained volatile. A senior Iranian source told Reuters there had been no progress in talks to revive the interim deal reached in June and establish a timeframe for its implementation, while shipping attacks continued.
On the bond markets, 10-year and 2-year rates were down 0.1% and 0.5% at 4.688% and 4.201%, respectively.
