Tech Gains Propel Market Sentiment, Leading to Stock Rally

Market Performance: The S&P 500, Dow Jones, and Nasdaq all closed higher on Friday, driven by a rally in cloud infrastructure and chipmaker stocks, with Oracle's significant gains following a TikTok partnership announcement.

Economic Indicators: US existing home sales reached a 9-month high, but consumer sentiment unexpectedly declined, while bond yields rose, limiting stock gains amid mixed economic signals.

Interest Rates and Bonds: Higher bond yields, particularly in Japan, pressured T-note prices, with the US 10-year yield rising to 4.15%. The yield curve steepened following the Fed's announcement to purchase short-term T-bills.

Stock Movers: Notable gainers included cloud and chip stocks, with Carnival leading cruise stocks after strong earnings. Conversely, Nike and Lamb Weston faced significant declines due to disappointing forecasts.