By Mark Hartley
Publication Date: 2026-05-17 08:09:00
The US stock market’s once again on fire, with the S&P 500 trading near-record levels (above 7,400 points) as technology leaders push the index higher.
Nvidia‘s (NASDAQ: NVDA) been a huge part of that story. The company’s market capitalisation recently passed the $5trn mark and the shares have led chip and artificial intelligence (AI) rallies that are driving investor attention worldwide.
But surely it’s not the only thing moving markets now?
A volatile growth environment
Clearly, AI and chip stocks are the main engine behind today’s gains, with investors piling into firms that supply the data centre hardware behind generative AI applications. Other big winners in this field are AMD and Intel.
“Artificial intelligence headlines this week have offered fresh evidence that investor interest and customer demand remains strong.”
Mark Haefele, Chief Investment Officer, UBS
At the same time, markets are watching US Treasury yields and incoming Federal Reserve signals because higher yields could cool the rally by raising discount rates on long‑duration tech profits.
In my opinion, it’s a promising, but fragile, market. A prolonged Middle East conflict has pushed oil prices higher amid Fed inflation worries. Not to mention, the tense Trump/Xi summit which is affecting risk appetite as trade and tech policy remain on the table.
The key question now is: can Nvidia keep markets optimistic?
