Nasdaq (^IXIC) Surges Beyond 23,000 as AI Leaders Drive Record-High Momentum Across Wall Street
Wall Street extended its powerful rally Wednesday, pushing the Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) to a historic 23,005 (+0.95%), while the S&P 500 (^GSPC) advanced 0.56% to 6,752.35, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) gained 0.13% to 46,673.07. The rebound came after Tuesday’s brief pause sparked by weakness in Oracle (NYSE:ORCL), with investors now refocusing on renewed optimism in artificial intelligence demand and the Federal Reserve’s rate-cut trajectory.
Technology and utilities dominated the session, each hitting fresh closing highs. Investor sentiment strengthened further after the Federal Reserve’s September minutes confirmed internal division but reinforced that policy remains firmly in easing mode. The market now prices a 95% probability of another rate cut in October following the central bank’s first reduction of 2025 last month. Despite the U.S. government shutdown dragging into its second week, Wall Street showed resilience, interpreting the lack of new economic data as a pause rather than a red flag.
Federal Reserve Minutes Highlight Split on Rate Path but Confirm Easing Cycle Is Underway
The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) minutes revealed a sharp divide among policymakers over how aggressively to cut rates. Roughly half of Fed officials favored two additional 25-basis-point cuts before year-end, while others advocated for three. Chair Jerome Powell’s stance remains cautiously dovish, signaling readiness to respond swiftly to economic deterioration.
Governor Stephen Miran dissented in favor of a deeper 50-basis-point cut, arguing that elevated real rates risk weakening labor markets and output. Meanwhile, Kansas City Fed President Jeff Schmid warned that excessive easing could reignite inflation if tariffs pass through to consumers. The split underscores the Fed’s challenge as it “flies blind” amid the shutdown’s disruption to data on employment, inflation, and consumer spending.
With futures markets aligning behind Powell’s moderate tone, the 10-year Treasury yield held steady near 4.13%, while the Cboe Volatility Index (VIX) remained subdued around 16.3, reflecting broad confidence that the Fed will avoid policy missteps as it transitions toward accommodation.
Nvidia (NVDA) and AMD (AMD) Extend Rally on Explosive AI Demand and Multi-Billion-Dollar Deals
Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA) climbed +2% to $188.36, building on Tuesday’s rebound after CEO Jensen Huang confirmed that AI computing demand “has gone up substantially” over the past six months. Huang revealed Nvidia’s participation in Elon Musk’s xAI financing round, pledging up to $2 billion in equity within a $20 billion capital package that will fund the Colossus 2 data center project in Memphis. The structure allows xAI to lease Nvidia GPUs while investors recover costs through long-term chip rentals — an innovative financing model showcasing how deep the AI hardware cycle has become.
Advanced Micro Devices (NASDAQ:AMD) surged +4.5% following news that OpenAI secured a multiyear chip agreement worth several billion dollars to purchase AMD’s upcoming MI450 series. In exchange, OpenAI received warrants for 160 million AMD shares, representing as much as 10% of the company’s equity if fully vested. Nvidia’s Huang described the deal as “imaginative and surprising,” a remark interpreted as both admiration and competitive curiosity.
Dell Technologies (DELL) Ignites Hardware Rally With Upgraded Outlook as AI Infrastructure Spending Accelerates
Dell Technologies (NYSE:DELL) jumped 7.7% to $162.53, adding to its 3.5% gain from the prior session after raising long-term projections at its investor event. The company now expects revenue growth between 7–9% annually through 2030, compared to its earlier 3–4% guidance, with adjusted EPS set to grow 15% or more per year.
CEO Michael Dell highlighted the company’s unique positioning across AI-capable servers, storage, and edge infrastructure. “Hardware is cool again,” he told investors, referencing demand for Dell’s systems incorporating Nvidia GPUs. Analysts from TD Cowen, JPMorgan (JPM), and Bank of America (BAC) all lifted price targets, citing Dell’s exposure to the “backbone of the AI revolution.”
Oracle (ORCL) Stabilizes After Margin Concerns as Market Reassesses AI Cloud Profitability
After a nine-session losing streak, Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) advanced 2.1% to $290.17, recovering from Tuesday’s 2.5% decline triggered by reports that its AI cloud margins were under pressure. Investors initially worried that Oracle was losing money leasing Nvidia H100 GPUs to major clients; however, management emphasized that near-term profitability was less important than long-term dominance in AI-driven enterprise workloads.
The broader AI ecosystem faced similar scrutiny as analysts debated whether cross-investments between Nvidia, Oracle, AMD, and Meta (NASDAQ:META) could create valuation distortions. Still, with cloud demand growing faster than expected, the S&P 500’s technology sector remains the strongest component year-to-date, up nearly 37% in 2025.
Intel (INTC) Faces Downgrade as HSBC Warns Against Overvaluation Despite U.S. Backing
Intel (NASDAQ:INTC) slipped 0.5% to $36.97 after HSBC downgraded the stock to Reduce from Hold, warning that recent deal-driven momentum was “unsustainable without clear fabrication execution.” Over the past two months, Intel announced major partnerships, including an $11.1 billion U.S. government investment for a 9.9% equity stake, $5 billion from Nvidia, and $2 billion from SoftBank. HSBC cautioned that while these inflows improved liquidity, they failed to address structural weaknesses in Intel’s foundry division, which continues to trail Taiwan Semiconductor (NYSE:TSM) on advanced nodes.
Alibaba (BABA) Strengthens Ahead of Earnings as Jefferies Reaffirms Buy Rating and $230 Target
Alibaba (NYSE:BABA) extended its 2025 gains to over 114%, trading near $181, after Jefferies reiterated its Buy rating and Top Pick status ahead of the November 13 earnings release. Analyst Thomas Chong maintained a $230 price target, implying 27% upside, citing robust AI-cloud integration and accelerating e-commerce synergies.
Jefferies expects customer management revenue to outpace overall GMV growth this quarter, supported by improved monetization in logistics and quick commerce. The call reinforced confidence that Alibaba remains Asia’s most strategically leveraged AI+Cloud play, especially as Chinese tech equities rebound amid easing regulatory conditions.
Gold (XAU/USD) Hits $4,065/oz Record as Dollar Index (DXY) Rises and Investors Flee Fiat Risk
Comex gold futures (GC=F) soared +1.53% to $4,065.70/oz, marking another all-time high, while silver (SI=F) climbed to $48.81, just below its 1980 record. Bitcoin (BTC-USD) hovered around $123,687, extending its correlation with precious metals as part of what analysts call the “debasement trade.”
Hedge fund titan Ray Dalio described gold as “certainly more of a safe haven than the U.S. dollar,” arguing that rising debt burdens and geopolitical instability echo the inflationary 1970s. According to TD Securities, the rally could extend toward $4,400/oz in early 2026 as central banks diversify reserves and the Fed continues easing into a high-deficit environment.
