The S&P 500 experienced an upward close on Thursday, buoyed by a rally in Oracle shares and a positive inflation report. The S&P 500 concluded Thursday on an upward trajectory, propelled by a rally in Oracle that enhanced investor optimism and invigorated the large technology sector. The benchmark increased by 0.38%, concluding at 6,045.26. The broad market S&P 500 currently stands less than 2% below its all-time high. The Nasdaq Composite experienced an increase of 0.24%, concluding the day at 19,662.48. The Dow Jones Industrial Average increased by 101.85 points, representing a 0.24% rise, concluding at 42,967.62.

Oracle’s shares experienced a notable increase of 13% following the release of its fiscal fourth-quarter results, which surpassed expectations on both revenue and earnings, while also signaling potential for further growth in the cloud sector. CEO Safra Catz stated during a conference call that due to demand for AI, cloud infrastructure revenue is expected to rise by over 70% in the 2026 fiscal year, compared to a growth rate of 52% in the recent quarter. Oracle’s rally has propelled the tech sector, consequently enhancing the performance of the S&P 500. Conversely, Boeing, a component of the Dow, experienced a decline of nearly 5% after an Air India Dreamliner 787 crashed shortly after takeoff with 242 passengers aboard.

Equities experienced an uptick following the release of additional data suggesting a robust economic environment. The May producer price index, which reflects final demand prices within the U.S. economy, experienced a modest increase of 0.1% for the month, following a decline of 0.2% in April. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones anticipated a 0.2% increase for the previous month. On Thursday, bond yields experienced a decline subsequent to the release of the inflation report.

Nonetheless, President Donald Trump’s unilateral tariff threat appeared to be restraining the market’s gains. Market participants are closely monitoring the evolving trade policy landscape, particularly regarding the interactions between the U.S. and China, as negotiations between the two nations have taken center stage this week. On Wednesday, Trump indicated a willingness to extend the July 8 deadline for concluding trade negotiations with various countries prior to the implementation of increased U.S. tariffs, although he suggested that such extensions might ultimately prove unnecessary. “I would, but I do not believe that such a necessity will arise.” “We made a great deal with China,” Trump stated to reporters. “We are engaging with Japan and South Korea. We are currently managing a significant number of them. We will be dispatching letters to various countries in approximately one to two weeks, outlining the details of the agreement, similar to the approach taken with the EU.

Officials from the U.S. and China established a framework for future discussions in London following two days of negotiations this week. However, the ambiguous outline of the agreement is still pending approval from President Trump and President Xi Jinping. The two nations reached an accord to relax certain limitations concerning rare earth metals and the admission of foreign students. “We maintain that the principal catalyst for market trajectory and achieving all-time highs would be a resolution regarding tariffs and their connection to the budget and the Federal Reserve.” “And we see a lot of headlines about negotiations or pauses or frameworks, but we still haven’t seen a single signed trade deal between the U.S. and its trade partners,” stated Tom Hainlin, senior investment strategist at U.S. Bank Asset Management Group. He added: “So for us, we still see ourselves sitting within our base case of uncertainty regarding the trajectory of trade negotiations. The market appears to be oscillating within broad ranges, yet it is notably devoid of a sustainable breakout until a resolution is reached.