The US stock market ended the week on a strong note, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite closing at all-time highs. The gains were fueled by optimism surrounding a potential US-China trade agreement and rising expectations of a US Federal Reserve rate cut, following signs of economic softness.

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🔼 Market Highlights

• Dow Jones surged 432.43 points (+1.00%) to close at 43,819.27
• S&P 500 rose 32.05 points (+0.52%) to 6,173.07
• Nasdaq Composite climbed 105.55 points (+0.52%) to settle at 20,273.46

All three major indices posted weekly gains, signaling broad investor confidence.

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🚀 What’s Driving the Rally?

🛃 Trade Deal Hopes

Investor sentiment was lifted as Washington and Beijing agreed to expedite rare-earth shipments to the US ahead of the July 9 deadline. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent added that trade deals with 18 major partners could be finalized by Labor Day (September 1).

📉 Interest Rate Expectations

Following a 0.1% decline in consumer spending in May and mixed economic data, markets are now pricing in:

• 76% probability of a Fed rate cut in September
• 19% chance of a rate cut as early as July
  (Source: CME’s FedWatch tool)

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🔍 Sectoral Performance

Among the 11 sectors of the S&P 500:

• Top Gainer: Consumer Discretionary
• Laggard: Energy

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📊 Buzzing Stocks

• Nvidia: +1.8%, nearing $4 trillion market cap
• Amazon: +2.85%
• Nike: +15.2%, after upbeat revenue forecast
• Micron Technology: -0.98%
• Tesla: -1.43%

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📉 Gold Loses Shine

As geopolitical tensions ease with the Israel-Iran ceasefire, gold lost its safe-haven appeal:

• MCX Gold August Futures: -₹1,563 (-1.61%) to ₹95,524/10g
• Weekly decline: -3.61%
• COMEX Gold dropped below $3,270/oz, marking its second weekly loss

Silver also mirrored the trend:

• MCX Silver (Sep): -₹1,468 (-1.36%) to ₹1,06,429/kg

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📈 India Market Snapshot

• NIFTY 50: 25,637.8 (+0.35%)
• SENSEX: 84,058.9 (+0.36%)
• NIFTY Smallcap 100: +0.91%
• NIFTY Midcap 100: +0.27%

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🔮 Expert Take

Varun Goel, Senior Fund Manager at Mirae Asset, remains bullish on India:

“FY26 could see a growth rebound led by capex, credit growth, and strong corporate earnings. Small-cap valuations are mixed, but long-term outlook remains solid.”

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💡 Summary

Despite global uncertainty, markets are riding high on trade optimism, Fed stimulus hopes, and corporate resilience. While short-term volatility may persist, analysts remain optimistic about continued strength in equities and a softening in safe-haven assets like gold.

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