The stock market was split in half on Thursday, with strong earnings from old economy leader Caterpillar boosting the Dow Jones Industrial Average, while concerns about overly ambitious artificial intelligence spending knocked down Meta and the NASDAQ
The 30-stock index climbed 738.67 points, or 1.5%, to 49,600.48.
The S&P 500 revived 34.11 points to 7,134.85.
The tech-driven NASDAQ regained 35.78 points to 24,709.02.
The report offers a glimmer of hope for the U.S. economy, which saw disappointing growth in the first quarter. On Thursday, the Commerce Department reported that gross domestic product rose at a 2% annualized pace in the period. While that was an increase from 0.5% in the fourth quarter of 2025, it was below the 2.2% estimate.
Conversely, Meta Platforms and Microsoft lost 9% and 5%, respectively, weighing on the S&P 500 and NASDAQ, which are more tilted toward technology-related stocks. Meta shares were weighed by the company’s latest capital expenditures guidance, while user growth disappointed. The company also raised its capex spending for the year.
That was a similar point of concern for Microsoft, as shares were under pressure after the company said spending will reach $190 billion due to high memory costs.
Even with the latest pressure in tech, a jump in those stocks has placed the three major averages on pace to round out a strong month. The S&P 500 has risen more than 9% month to date, putting the index on pace for its best month since November 2020.
The NASDAQ is heading for a 13% jump, tracking for its best month since April 2020. The Dow is set to end April with a more than 6% gain — its strongest monthly performance since November 2024.
Oil prices reversed course Thursday, with Brent crude futures losing 2% to trade above $114 a barrel and West Texas Intermediate futures falling 0.5% to trade above $106.
Crude prices rose Wednesday as overseas tensions remained high between the U.S. and Iran. The Wall Street Journal, citing U.S. officials, reported that President Donald Trump told his aides to prepare for an extended blockade of Iran.
Prices for the 10-year Treasury gained ground, lowering yields to 4.39% from Wednesday’s 4.41%.
Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices retreated $2.94 to $103.94 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices pointed higher $67.30 to $4,628.80 U.S. an ounce.
