S&P 500 Nears Record High as SK Hynix Debut Boosts Tech Ahead of Earnings Season

U.S. stock indexes closed higher on Friday, with the S&P 500 ending the week just short of a record high. The gains were driven by a strong market debut for South Korean chipmaker SK Hynix and growing investor anticipation for the second-quarter earnings season, which begins next week.

Market Performance

The S&P 500 climbed 0.42% to finish the session at 7,575.39 points, leaving it just 0.45% below its record high set in June. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.29% to 52,637.01, while the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.29% to 26,281.61.

For the week, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq posted gains of 1.2% and 1.7%, respectively, while the Dow registered a weekly loss of 0.5%. Trading volume was relatively light, with 14.5 billion shares exchanged, below the 20-session average of 22.4 billion, according to the source.

• Leading Sectors: Information Technology (+1.65%) and Consumer Discretionary (+1.46%) were the top performers among the eight S&P 500 sectors that advanced.
• Individual Movers: Meta Platforms (META) jumped 6% to its highest level since April, while Moderna (MRNA) fell nearly 11% in its worst session in over a year.

SK Hynix Debut Fuels AI Optimism

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The artificial intelligence trade regained momentum following the blockbuster U.S. listing of SK Hynix. The semiconductor giant raised over $26 billion by selling American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) priced at $149 each.

The company's shares ended their first day of trading at $170, a 13% premium to the offering price. The successful debut bolstered sentiment across the chip sector, with the PHLX Semiconductor Index gaining 0.06% for its third consecutive day of advances.

Focus Shifts to Earnings

Investors are now turning their attention to the second-quarter earnings season, which kicks off next week with reports from major U.S. banks. Analysts surveyed by LSEG I/B/E/S project that S&P 500 earnings will surge 24% from the same period a year earlier, with technology firms expected to be major contributors to that growth.

"This is a high-bar quarter with a narrow margin of error," said Terry Sandven, chief equity strategist at U.S. Bank Wealth Management, in a comment to Reuters. "The banks will give us a good read on the underlying economic strength and what consumers and businesses are doing." Upcoming inflation data for June and testimony from Federal Reserve officials will also be closely watched for insights into the central bank's monetary policy path.