S&P 500, Nasdaq rise to record highs boosted by Nvidia record valuation, strong Delta forecast

The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite rose modestly to post record closing highs on Thursday, boosted by an upbeat forecast from Delta Air Lines and a record close for Nvidia while investors shrugged off President Donald Trump's latest tariffs.

Delta shares rallied 12% after the carrier forecast third-quarter and full-year profits above Wall Street estimates.

The sector rallied, with United Airlines adding 14.3% and American Airlines climbing 12.7%. The Dow Transportation Index, widely considered an economic barometer, hit its highest since late February.

Nvidia rose 0.7% and closed above the $4 trillion valuation milestone for the first time, the S&P 500's second biggest boost on the day.

Initial jobless claims for the week of July 5 came in at 227,000, below the consensus of 235,000 in a Reuters poll. The number marked a seven-week low although data around holidays such as last week's July Fourth can often be volatile.

The Delta update and "pretty tame" jobless claims reassured investors, said Mark Luschini, chief investment strategist at Janney Montgomery Scott in Philadelphia.

"Collectively that helped to re-insert the risk-on mode that was in full bloom yesterday and carried over to today," the strategist said, adding that investors are "increasingly desensitized" to the potential threat tariffs pose to inflation and unemployment.

"At the moment, investors are looking through or not accounting for that threat and won't likely until hard evidence presents itself," said Luschini.

The S&P 500 notched its fifth record close since June 27 while the Nasdaq registered its sixth record closing high in the same timeframe. Thursday marked the S&P 500's eighth record close so far in 2025.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 192.34 points, or 0.43%, to 44,650.64, less than 1 percentage point below its record close, reached in early December.

The S&P 500 gained 17.20 points, or 0.27%, to 6,280.46 and the Nasdaq Composite gained 19.33 points, or 0.09%, to 20,630.67.

Nine of the 11 major S&P sectors advanced. Communication services fell almost 0.5% with technology down 0.1%.

Despite Nvidia's record close, megacaps were a mixed bag. Netflix, Microsoft and Meta lost ground. Tesla was the S&P 500's biggest boost, rising 4.7%, after the electric vehicle maker announced that its annual shareholder meeting would be in November. A group of investors had urged it to set a date, citing legal obligations.

Last week's robust labor market report had sent Wall Street's major indexes to record highs, a rebound from April's sharp sell-off following "Liberation Day" tariff announcements.

"You're checking off the uncertainty boxes. You had the big bill that was passed last week. That was a big uncertainty that has been checked off. You're starting to get more clarity on tariffs. It's not done yet but you're starting to get a little more clarity," said Chris Haverland, Global Equity Strategist, Wells Fargo Investment Institute as he noted the market's record levels.

"You'll have second quarter earnings season just getting started next week and you'll see how companies are managing through the tariffs."

Trump's latest announcements included a new 50% tariff on copper to start on August 1 and a threat of 50% tariff on exports of goods from Brazil to the U.S. He also issued tariff notices to other trading partners.

Several countries still await official word from the White House, with investors closely monitoring trade negotiations.

Minutes from the Federal Reserve's June meeting, released on Wednesday, revealed that most policymakers anticipate rate cuts this year, viewing the inflationary impact of tariffs as likely to be "temporary or modest."

While most investors believe a July rate cut is off the table, the chance of a September cut of 25 basis points is close to 64%, according to CME Group's FedWatch tool.

It may take until late this year - or even into 2026 - before the true impact of rising import tariffs on inflation comes into focus, St. Louis Fed President Alberto Musalem said, highlighting why Fed officials are cautious about rate cuts.

Among other stocks, WK Kellogg rallied 30.6% following reports that Italian candy maker Ferrero was nearing a deal to buy the cereal maker.

But Conagra Brands shares sank 4.4% after it forecast annual profit below Wall Street expectations, citing higher tariff-related costs for products, including its Hunt's ketchup, due to levies on imports from China and on metals.

Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 2.23-to-1 ratio on the NYSE where there were 374 new highs and 36 new lows. On the Nasdaq, 2,602 stocks rose and 1,885 fell as advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 1.38-to-1 ratio.

The S&P 500 posted 29 new 52-week highs and 5 new lows while the Nasdaq Composite recorded 94 new highs and 29 new lows.

On U.S. exchanges 18.16 billion shares changed hands compared with the 18.31 billion average for the last 20 sessions.