Amazon Stock Surge Drives Wall Street to Gains/ Newslooks/ WASHINGTON/ J. Mansour/ Morning Edition/ Amazon’s 11% stock surge lifted the broader U.S. stock market, putting Wall Street on track for its third winning week and sixth consecutive winning month. The S&P 500 rebounded Friday, while the Nasdaq outperformed thanks to tech gains. Strong earnings across major companies helped offset investor concerns around inflation, spending, and geopolitical tensions.
Amazon Stock Rally Quick Looks
- Amazon rose 11.4% after reporting blowout earnings.
- S&P 500 climbed 0.5%, nearing its recent all-time high.
- Wall Street is on track for third straight winning week.
- Nasdaq led Friday’s rally, up 0.9% by midmorning.
- Amazon’s cloud business returned to 2022 growth levels.
- Apple posted strong results but had a muted market impact.
- Reddit and Coinbase stocks jumped after topping forecasts.
- Netflix announced a 10-for-1 stock split, rising 3.2%.
- AbbVie fell 3.8% despite solid earnings due to high expectations.
- Microsoft and Meta fell again as AI spending raised investor concerns.
- Global markets mixed: Hong Kong, Shanghai fell; Japan rose.
- U.S. bond yields edged lower following Fed caution.
Deep Look
Amazon’s Blowout Earnings Propel Wall Street Toward Another Winning Week and Month
Wall Street rallied on Friday as tech powerhouse Amazon led the charge with a double-digit stock jump, pushing major indexes closer to record highs and extending the market’s recent hot streak.
The S&P 500 gained 0.5% in early trading, shaking off Thursday’s losses and positioning itself for a third consecutive winning week. If Friday’s upward trend holds, the index will also secure its sixth straight positive month—its longest monthly winning streak since 2021.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 61 points, or 0.1%, while the Nasdaq composite surged 0.9%, outperforming the broader market thanks to strength in major tech names.
Amazon’s Weight Lifts the Market
Amazon was the clear market driver, soaring 11.4% following a quarterly earnings report that significantly exceeded analyst expectations. CEO Andy Jassy noted that Amazon Web Services, the company’s highly profitable cloud segment, had “reaccelerated” its growth to levels not seen since 2022.
At a market valuation of roughly $2.4 trillion, Amazon is one of the largest components of the S&P 500. Its movements have an outsized impact on the index. Without Amazon’s rally, the S&P would have been nearly flat for the day.
Meanwhile, Apple—the only company larger than Amazon at over $4 trillion—also posted strong quarterly results, with growth in iPhone sales and services. However, its stock fluctuated modestly, offering less influence on the index due to a less dramatic earnings beat.
Tech and Earnings Dominate the Session
Positive earnings news extended beyond the mega caps. Reddit climbed 15.2%, erasing earlier weekly losses after reporting stronger-than-expected profit and revenue. Coinbase Global rose 6% following an earnings beat that showed continued strength in the cryptocurrency market.
Netflix also rose, gaining 3.2% after announcing a 10-for-1 stock split aimed at improving share accessibility for individual investors. The move will give shareholders nine additional shares for every one currently owned, without changing the total value of their investment.
On the downside, AbbVie slipped 3.8%. While the drugmaker posted a solid earnings report, the results weren’t as far above expectations as in previous quarters. Analysts pointed to lofty investor expectations coming into the earnings release, especially with the stock already up nearly 30% for the year.
AI Concerns and Fed Caution Weigh
Thursday’s slump in the market had been fueled by growing concern over increased spending by tech giants Meta and Microsoft, especially around AI infrastructure and development. Those concerns carried over into Friday, with Microsoft dropping another 1.3% and Meta down 0.9%, dragging on overall gains.
Investors also remain cautious following recent comments by Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell. While many had anticipated another interest rate cut in December, Powell pushed back against those expectations, saying another cut was “far from a foregone conclusion.”
As a result, Treasury yields, which had surged earlier in the week, moderated slightly. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to 4.07% from 4.11%, though still higher than the pre-Powell level of 3.99%.
Global Market Picture Mixed
Overseas, stock markets showed mixed signals. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index fell 1.4% and Shanghai’s main index dropped 0.8% after disappointing Chinese factory data revealed October marked the seventh consecutive month of contraction in manufacturing activity.
Conversely, Japan’s Nikkei 225 climbed 2.1% to reach a new all-time high following a report showing stronger-than-expected industrial production growth in September.
Investors Watching Central Banks
With the Fed signaling a potential pause, other global central banks appear to be moving in a similar direction.
Economists at Bank of America wrote in a Friday note that “it seems this is it for the 2025 easing season in developed economies,” signaling limited room for further rate cuts unless economic conditions worsen.
Despite lingering concerns around tech sector spending, geopolitical risks with China, and uncertainty around monetary policy, strong corporate earnings have helped support investor confidence heading into November.
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