Meta, Microsoft Power Wall Street To New Records Despite Inflation Jump: What's Moving Markets Thursday?

Piero Cingari

July 31, 2025

A post-earnings surge in Meta Platforms Inc. (NASDAQ:META) and Microsoft Corp. (NYSE:MSFT) sent major tech-heavy indices to fresh record highs Thursday, capping a fourth consecutive month of gains for U.S. equities.

By midday in New York, the S&P 500 rose 0.7% to break above 6,400, while the Nasdaq 100 climbed past 24,500 -- each logging new intraday highs.

Meta jumped 11% after delivering blockbuster second-quarter results and upbeat revenue guidance. Microsoft climbed about 5% after reporting strong Azure revenues.

The combined market value of the Magnificent Seven swelled past $19.4 trillion, with both Microsoft and Nvidia Corp. (NASDAQ:NVDA) worth more than $4 trillion.

Indexes with less tech exposure lagged: the Dow Jones added just 0.1%, while the Russell 2000 slipped 0.1%.

The broader market surge came despite hotter-than-expected inflation data that supported the Federal Reserve's decision to keep interest rates steady in July.

The Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) price index rose to 2.6% in June from 2.3% in May, surpassing the 2.5% forecast. Core PCE, the Fed's preferred inflation gauge, held at 2.8%, above the 2.7% consensus.

Traders are now pricing in just a 39% chance of a rate cut in September, according to the CME FedWatch Tool, down from 65% earlier this week.

On trade, President Donald Trump announced a new 15% tariff on select South Korean imports, while a deal with Mexico was extended for another 90 days.

The U.S. dollar index gained 0.1%, aiming for its sixth straight daily gain and the longest winning streak since 2022.

Commodities remained under pressure. Copper fell another 5% to $4.39 per pound, nearing April's lows after Wednesday's historic 19.4% drop triggered by tariff exemptions on refined copper.

Silver lost 1.3%, while gold edged up 0.5% to $3,290 per ounce.

In crypto, Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) rose 0.9% to $118,871.

Thursday’s Performance In Major U.S. Indices, ETFs

Major Indices	Price	1-day chg. %
S&P 500	6,406.83	0.7%
Nasdaq 100	23,495.60	0.7%
Dow Jones	44,550.87	0.2%
Russell 2000	2,229.94	-0.1 %

Updated by 12:35 p.m. ET

According to Benzinga Pro data:

The Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (NYSE:VOO) rose 0.6% to $586.59.
The SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average (NYSE:DIA) inched 0.1% up to $444.99.
The tech-heavy Invesco QQQ Trust Series (NASDAQ:QQQ) rose 0.5% to $570.89.
The iShares Russell 2000 ETF (NYSE:IWM) eased 0.2% to $221.21.
The Communication Services Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLC) outperformed, up 1.6%; the Health Care Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLV) lagged, down 0.7%.

Thursday’s Stock Movers

Stocks moving on earnings reports included:

Microsoft Corp. up 4.5%
Meta Platforms, Inc. up 12.3%
Mastercard Inc. (NYSE:MA) up 3.0%
AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV) up 2.5%
S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI) up 4.3%
QUALCOMM Incorporated (NASDAQ:QCOM) down 6.2%
KKR & Co. Inc. (NYSE:KKR) down 2.4%
Comcast Corporation (NASDAQ:CMCSA) up 2.4%
Lam Research Corporation (NASDAQ:LRCX) down 4.5%
Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (NYSE:ICE) up 0.4%
The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) up 0.3%
Bristol-Myers Squibb Company (NYSE:BMY) down 4.6%
Carvana Co. (NYSE:CVNA) up 18.2%
CVS Health Corporation (NYSE:CVS) up 1.6%
Equinix, Inc. (NASDAQ:EQIX) up 0.9%
The Cigna Group (NYSE:CI) down 6%
Howmet Aerospace Inc. (NYSE:HWM) down 9.5%
Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE:APD) down 0.6%
Quanta Services, Inc. (NYSE:PWR) down 2.6%
Allstate Corp. (NYSE:ALL) up 6.7%
Public Storage (NYSE:PSA) down 4.8%
Exelon Corporation (NASDAQ:EXC) up 1.1%
Ford Motor Company (NYSE:F) up 2.5%
AMETEK, Inc. (NYSE:AME) up 5.9%
eBay Inc. (NASDAQ:EBAY) up 18.6%
Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) up 1.5%
Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) up 3%
Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation (NASDAQ:CTSH) up 0.1%
Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE:VMC) down 0.7%
VICI Properties Inc. (NYSE:VICI) up 1.5%
Xylem Inc. (NYSE:XYL) up 9.3%
Fair Isaac Corporation (NYSE:FICO) down 11.1%
DexCom, Inc. (NASDAQ:DXCM) down 6.7%
Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company (NASDAQ:WTW) up 5.0%
Blue Owl Capital Inc. (NYSE:OWL) down 0.7%
PG&E Corporation (NYSE:PCG) down 0.8%
Ventas, Inc. (NYSE:VTR) up 1.1%
Extra Space Storage Inc. (NYSE:EXR) down 8.1%
Kellanova (NYSE:K) up 0.1%
Albemarle Corp. (NYSE:ALB) down 0.6%
American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE:AWK) up 1.0%
AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) down 2.9%
Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:WDC) up 8.7%
PPL Corporation (NYSE:PPL) down 0.7%
PTC Inc. (NASDAQ:PTC) up 7.6%
International Paper Company (NYSE:IP) down 8.9%
Tyler Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:TYL) up 4.9%
FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE:FE) up 1.5%
Invitation Homes Inc. (NYSE:INVH) down 0.7%
Biogen Inc. (NASDAQ:BIIB) up 1.8%
GFL Environmental Inc. (NYSE:GFL) up 5.6%
F5, Inc. (NASDAQ:FFIV) up 6.8%
Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. (NYSE:MAA) down 2.0%
Aptiv PLC (NYSE:APTV) up 4.2%
Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFM) down 3.4%
Hologic, Inc. (NASDAQ:HOLX) up 2.6%
Kimco Realty Corporation (NYSE:KIM) down 0.9%
Everest Group, Ltd. (NYSE:EG) up 2.0%
Masco Corporation (NYSE:MAS) up 3.9%
XPO, Inc. (NYSE:XPO) down 8.9%
UDR, Inc. (NYSE:UDR) flat at -0.0%
C.H. Robinson Worldwide, Inc. (NASDAQ:CHRW) up 17.1%
Builders FirstSource, Inc. (NYSE:BLDR) down 2.8%
Baxter International Inc. (NYSE:BAX) down 19.1%
Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. (NYSE:NCLH) up 8.9%
Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. (NASDAQ:HST) down 1.5%
Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. (NYSE:HII) up 9.9%
Antero Resources Corporation (NYSE:AR) up 2.7%
MGM Resorts International (NYSE:MGM) down 4.1%

Stocks slated to report earnings after the close include: Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL), Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN), MercadoLibre, Inc. (NASDAQ:MELI), Stryker Corp (NYSE:SYK), KLA Corp (NASDAQ:KLAC), First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR), Roper Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:ROP), Monolithic Power Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:MPWR), Ingersoll Rand Inc. (NYSE:IR), Eastman Chemical Company (NYSE:EMN), LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA), AES Corporation (NYSE:AES), Vale S.A. (NYSE:VALE), The Clorox Company (NYSE:CLX), Coinbase Global, Inc. (NASDAQ:COIN), Roku, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROKU), Mettler-Toledo International Inc. (NYSE:MTD), Edison International (NYSE:EIX), ResMed Inc. (NYSE:RMD), Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG), Ameren Corporation (NYSE:AEE), Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE:WTRG), Camden Property Trust (NYSE:CPT), Healthpeak Properties, Inc. (NYSE:DOC), Huntsman Corporation (NYSE:HUN), Northern Oil and Gas, Inc. (NYSE:NOG), Park Hotels & Resorts Inc. (NYSE:PK), Procore Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:PCOR), Rogers Corporation (NYSE:ROG), Ryan Specialty Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:RYAN), and Essex Property Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ESS).

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