By Caroline Valetkevitch
NEW YORK (Reuters) – U.S. stocks ended higher and the Nasdaq notched a record closing high for the second straight day on Friday as technology-related shares, including Apple, gained and as investors were optimistic about potential interest rate cuts.
The three major indexes also registered solid gains for the week.
Apple shares climbed 4.2% on Friday and were up 13.3% for the week in their biggest weekly percentage gain since 2020. U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday said Apple would invest an additional $100 billion in the U.S., bringing its total commitment to $600 billion over the next four years.
The S&P 500 technology and communication services indexes led sector gains for the S&P 500 on Friday and the indexes also posted record high closes.
Also helping the S&P 500, shares of Gilead Sciences jumped 8.3% after it raised its full-year financial outlook.
Recent weaker economic data has underpinned expectations for rate cuts, while investors are evaluating Trump’s interim pick for a Federal Reserve governor.
The president late in Thursday’s session nominated Council of Economic Advisers Chair Stephen Miran to a short-term board seat following Adriana Kugler’s abrupt exit last week, as he narrowed his shortlist to succeed Fed Chair Jerome Powell, whose term ends on May 15.
Miran, who is often aligned with Trump, has previously suggested Powell was “too late” in lowering rates.
“There are certainly investors who think if the Fed is going to cut rates then the overarching theme is, don’t fight the Fed on lower rates,” said Rick Meckler, partner at Cherry Lane Investments, a family investment office in New Vernon, New Jersey.
“The other side of the equation has really been the tariffs, and how the tariffs turn out remains uncertain.”
Expectations for a rate cut of at least 25 basis points by the Fed at its September meeting stand at 89.4%, according to CME’s FedWatch Tool, up from 80.3% a week ago. Futures are pointing to at least two cuts by year-end.
Trump’s higher tariffs on imports from dozens of countries kicked in this week.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 206.97 points, or 0.47%, to 44,175.61, the S&P 500 gained 49.45 points, or 0.78%, to 6,389.45 and the Nasdaq Composite gained 207.32 points, or 0.98%, to 21,450.02.
It was the Nasdaq’s 18th record closing high for 2025, with the index now up about 11% for the year so far. The S&P 500 ended just shy of a record closing finish.
For the week, the S&P 500 rose 2.4%, the Dow gained 1.3% and the Nasdaq climbed 3.9%.
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