Post-close recap — 2026-08-04
How the day closed
- S&P 500 7,736.52 (+1.79%) — fresh record high, first since June
- Dow 54,085.88 (+907 pts, +1.71%) — new all-time closing high
- Nasdaq Composite 26,584.99 (+2.59%) — tech-led melt-up
- Russell 2000 3,036.98 (+1.85%)
A risk-on session driven by falling crude and easing Middle East tensions after Treasury Secretary Bessent flagged a possible US–Iran deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, with AI names leading a broad tech rebound (Motley Fool).
Sectors & breadth
- Winners: Technology led (+4.2%), followed by Industrials (+3.4%), Consumer Discretionary (+3.3%), Communication Services (+1.6%).
- Laggards: Materials (-2.3%); Energy and Utilities faded as WTI collapsed.
- Standouts: Palantir +~27–30% on blowout AI results, Zebra Tech +18.6%, Gartner +16.3%, Caterpillar +5.6% on record revenue. Big-cap AI: Meta +6%, Alphabet +4.9%, Microsoft +4.9%, Amazon +4.6%.
- Downside: Aptiv -15.5% on weak guidance, NRG -10% on mixed Q2, AdaptHealth -40% on miss + guide-down (Yahoo Finance).
Rates, FX, commodities, vol
- 10Y UST: ~4.61–4.63%, lower on the day as oil-led disinflation hopes lifted duration (Motley Fool)
- 2Y UST: ~4.21%, curve modestly steeper
- DXY: 99.97, essentially flat (Trading Economics)
- WTI: ~$75.32 (-6%) on Hormuz reopening headlines
- Gold: ~$4,080/oz (+0.7%) as traders weighed disinflation vs. lower-rates tailwind (Kitco)
- VIX: ~15.8, down slightly — vol compressed as geopolitical premium bled out
Drivers & headlines
- Hormuz de-escalation: Bessent said a US–Iran deal to restore commercial shipping through the strait could land "Tuesday or Wednesday," collapsing the war premium in crude (Motley Fool).
- AI trade re-ignites: Nasdaq +2.6% as mega-cap hyperscalers ripped and Palantir printed one of the largest single-day gains for a large-cap this year on Q2 results (TheStreet).
- Manufacturing surprise: July ISM/PMI print came in at 55.6 — best monthly reading since mid-2022 — reinforcing the "no landing" narrative (Yahoo Finance).
- Rate-cut path: Cheaper crude reduces the inflation impulse, keeping a fall Fed cut in play; futures leaned dovish into the ISM Services print tomorrow (XTB).
- Cyclicals confirm: Caterpillar's record quarter alongside Industrials +3.4% signals the rally broadened beyond tech.
After-hours
- AMD: Beat on Q2 — EPS $1.66 vs $1.60 est., revenue $11.54B vs $11.25B est. — but shares fell ~7–8% after hours on guidance digestion (Investing.com).
- SpaceX (first-ever earnings report): Revenue $7.8B vs $6.81B est., adj. EBITDA $3.5B vs $2.0B est. Stock slipped post-print despite the beat — a classic "priced-for-perfection" reaction on the debut quarter (Yahoo Finance).
- Tech tape flipped defensive after the bell as the two headline prints failed to deliver upside surprises large enough to sustain the day's melt-up.
Setup for tomorrow
- US ISM Services PMI (Wed): Key gauge for the disinflation/growth mix — prices sub-index especially watched into the next Fed decision (XTB).
- EIA crude inventories: Follow-through on today's ~6% oil drawdown; a big build would cement the disinflation narrative, a draw could re-tighten the tape.
- Digestion of AMD/SpaceX: Watch whether after-hours weakness in semis and space names bleeds into the broader AI complex at the open after Palantir's monster session.
Sources: - Motley Fool — Stock Market Today, Aug. 4 - TheStreet — Stock Market Today (Aug. 4, 2026) - Yahoo Finance — Stock Market News for Aug 4, 2026 - Yahoo Finance — Tech stocks today: SpaceX and AMD post quarterly results - Investing.com — AMD earnings beat, shares slip after hours - CNN Business — S&P 500 back at record, Dow 54,000 - Bloomberg — Stock Market Today: Dow, S&P Live Updates for August 4 - Trading Economics — DXY - Kitco — Gold - XTB — Economic calendar: US Services ISM and JOLTS