MARKET SNAPSHOT

U.S. stocks were given a boost by solid earnings from Alphabet and Caterpillar. Treasury yields cooled down for the session, but still ended April with a rise, as the Strait of Hormuz's ongoing closure boosted energy prices and inflation. Oil prices pulled back from recent highs as the standoff between the U.S. and Iran drags on. Gold and silver rose as the dollar weakened.

MARKET WRAPS

EQUITIES

U.S. stocks rolled through a divided Federal Reserve, war in the Middle East and a gantlet of tech earnings to wrap up their best month in six years.

The major U.S. stock indexes moved higher Thursday, powered by strong results from Google parent Alphabet and heavy-machinery giant Caterpillar. In what was a recurring theme for markets in April, enthusiasm for corporate earnings and the AI revolution trumped concerns over conflict, inflation and interest rates.

"The tailwinds from this global industrial build-out can overwhelm the difficulty in absorbing the energy costs," said David Waddell, chief investment strategist at Waddell and Associates. "It's kind of astounding how much they've gone up."

The S&P 500 index rose 1% to a record, while the Nasdaq composite gained 0.9% to close at its seventh record-high of the year. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.6%.

Earlier Thursday, Asian stocks ended mixed.

China's Shanghai Composite Index and Shenzhen Composite Index both edged 0.1% higher. The tech-focused ChiNext Price Index lost 0.3%. AI chip maker Cambricon jumped 20% to regain the top spot as China's priciest stock.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index declined 1.3%.

Japan's Nikkei Average Index ended 1.1% lower, as tech and construction stocks led declines.

South Korea's Kospi was down 1.4%. Although closing lower in this session, Kospi has gained 31% in April.

Stocks in Australia slipped, as the S&P/ASX 200 Benchmark Index declined 0.2%. Despite the shocks of rising gasoline prices and higher interest rates, Australian household spending is holding up, according to the NAB's Spend Trend survey. The Reserve Bank of Australia is expected to raise interest rates by 25 bps on May 5, said Adam Boyton, head of Australian economics at ANZ.

New Zealand's S&P/NZX 50 Index increased 1.0%.

COMMODITIES

Oil futures retreated from overnight highs and settled lower with the market watching for the next move in the standoff between the U.S. and Iran.

Brent crude for June delivery fell 3.4% to go off the board at $114.01 a barrel, bringing it closer to the $110.40 for the July contract.

"On top of the expiration liquidation flush today, Brent also came under pressure after European Union economic data came in on the soft side," Mizuho's Robert Yawger said.

WTI settled down 1.7% at $105.07 a barrel.

Silver futures fell 1.6% to $73.354 a troy ounce in April.

It's the second consecutive month that silver has dropped, putting a cap on the huge 20% slide seen in silver last month.

In dollars, it is the most silver has fallen in a two-month period since 1980, while in percentage it is the most since March 2020.

Front-month silver finished higher Thursday, rising by 2.8%--putting an end to a 3-day losing streak for the metal. Analysts point to improved industrial demand for silver as a factor that could ultimately push silver back up in price.

Front-month gold closed up 1.6% to $4,635.10/oz.

TODAY'S TOP HEADLINES

Iran War Lifts Fed's Targeted Inflation Metric

Higher energy prices ratcheted up the Federal Reserve's preferred measure of inflation in March, illustrating why plans for further rate cuts have grown divisive at the central bank.

The personal-consumption expenditures price index climbed by 0.7% in March, after rising by 0.4% in February, the Commerce Department said Thursday. Excluding the volatile food and energy categories, core PCE prices rose by a tamer 0.3%.

Over the past year, the PCE price index is up by 3.5%, well above the 2% annual rate the Fed aims for. The core 12-month PCE inflation rate is 3.2%.

AI Investment Boosted Economic Growth, While Consumers Tapped the Brakes

U.S. economic growth picked up in the first quarter as businesses invested heavily in artificial intelligence, rebounding from a fourth quarter dented by a government shutdown.

At the same time, the economy didn't expand as fast as economists expected, weighed down by softer consumer spending growth.

Europe's Economy Stutters as War Drives Up Inflation

Europe's economy nearly flatlined in the first quarter as the war in the Middle East derails a long-awaited economic revival.

The eurozone economy grew at an annualized rate of 0.6% in the first quarter, according to Eurostat. Compared with the end of 2025, the economy expanded only 0.1%.

Apple Sales Top $111 Billion in Second Quarter, Powered by iPhone 17

Tim Cook's parting gift for his successor: strong iPhone sales and tidy margins.

Apple reported that revenue from iPhones rose 21.7% to nearly $57 billion in the second quarter compared with the prior year as customers, excited by the iPhone 17 lineup, continued to upgrade their devices at a brisk pace. That powered Apple to quarterly sales of $111.2 billion, results that exceeded Wall Street expectations.

The results might have been better if not for the constrained supply of advanced chips that power Apple's devices, said Apple Chief Financial Officer Kevan Parekh. Lately Taiwan Semiconductor, the maker of Apple's advanced chips, is selling more of its supply to artificial-intelliance chip makers such as Nvidia.

Rivian Reports a Smaller-Than-Expected Loss. It's Boosting EV Capacity.

Rivian had a busy quarter. Investors should be impressed.

Thursday evening, Rivian reported an adjusted operating loss of $621 million from sales of $1.4 billion. Wall Street was expecting a $819 million loss on $1.4 billion in sales. A year ago, Rivian reported an adjusted loss of $424 million on $1.2 billion in sales.

The smaller loss shows solid cost control. Sales are up with deliveries. Rivian delivered 10,365 vehicles in the first quarter, up from 8,640 delivered in the first quarter of 2025.

Caterpillar Lifts Outlook as AI-Fueled Power Demand Persists

Caterpillar said demand for its construction equipment, engines and generators remains strong despite rising geopolitical tensions and higher energy prices.

The company, known for its giant yellow dump trucks, bulldozers and excavators, is closely monitoring macroeconomic conditions in case recent pressures begin to weigh on demand, Chief Executive Joe Creed said on a call with analysts Thursday.

As of now, though, the added uncertainty hasn't been an issue.