Post-close recap — 2026-07-30

How the day closed

S&P 500: 7,437.63, +1.66% (+121.48)
Nasdaq Composite: 25,122.18, +2.78% (+679.24) — best day since June
Dow: 52,208.06, +1.19% (+613.92)

A powerful tech-led rebound from Wednesday's Fed-day selloff, engineered almost single-handedly by Microsoft's blowout print. Softer Q2 GDP and cooler June PCE also gave a dovish tint to the tape even as the Fed held Wednesday (Yahoo Finance, Motley Fool).

Sectors & breadth

Leaders: Tech (semis strong on the MSFT read-through), Communication Services ex-Meta, Consumer Discretionary (AMZN up into the print).
Laggards: Meta dragged Communication Services (-8% after Wednesday's earnings). Energy lagged as crude slipped.
Breadth broadened after Wednesday's narrow tape — advancers led decliners on both the NYSE and Nasdaq as the S&P recovered the Fed-day loss (TheStreet).

Rates, FX, commodities, vol

10Y UST: ~4.68% (held near post-Fed highs after stronger inflation swing factors) (Trading Economics)
2Y UST: ~4.20–4.25% area; curve holds a modest positive slope after Wed's three FOMC dissents (FRED DGS2)
DXY: 100.88, -0.53% on the softer GDP print (fxpremiere)
WTI crude: $83.87, -0.70% (Trading Economics)
Gold: $4,080.76, +0.36% (Trading Economics)
VIX: 17.09, -17.3% — full unwind of Wed's spike to 20.66 (Yahoo Finance)

Drivers & headlines

Microsoft +15.5% — largest single-day gain since 2008 after Q4 revenue of $90B (+18% y/y), Azure FY revenue crossing $100B for the first time, and guidance for 45% Azure growth next quarter. Copilot hit 30M paid seats (QZ, 24/7 Wall St).
Q2 GDP advance: +1.5% annualized vs +1.8% expected, down from +2.1% in Q1 — soft enough to reinforce cutting-bias hopes without triggering growth-scare selling (CNBC, InvestingLive).
June PCE cooled: headline +3.7% y/y (from 4.1%), core +3.3% y/y — in-line with consensus and a step in the right direction after May's uptick (CNBC).
Meta -8% extended Wednesday's post-earnings decline (EPS $6.18 vs $7.13 est, capex/AI-spend recoupment worries), one of the few notable single-name drags (TipRanks).
Fed backdrop: Wednesday's 9-3 hold at 3.50–3.75% (three dovish dissents) plus Chair Warsh's presser continues to shape the tape; today's soft data quieted the hawkish read of the statement (CNBC, CNN).

After-hours

Amazon +~8% AH: Q2 revenue $200.6B (+20% y/y), AWS growth reaccelerating; the AI-capex payoff narrative continues to work (Motley Fool).
Apple -3% to -4% AH: Record June quarter — revenue $109.4B (+16%), EPS $2.02 (+29%), iPhone $54.25B beat — but Services $30.74B missed ($31.22B est), blamed on FX. Beat with an asterisk (9to5Mac, Yahoo).
Middle East headline risk lingering after reports of overnight US strikes on Iranian positions — didn't move oil today but sits on the tape (Yahoo Finance).

Setup for tomorrow

AAPL vs AMZN gap-open tug-of-war into month-end Friday — expect divergent reactions to weigh on QQQ breadth even if the tape stays green.
Month-end rebalancing flows into the close on Friday; after this week's tech round-trip, watch for pension/BofA-style rebalance selling of equities into bonds.
Geopolitics + oil: any escalation off the reported Iran strikes could re-price crude and rate-vol overnight; watch WTI open and MOVE index Friday AM.

Post-Close Recap — 2026-07-30