The Prime Daily: 31 July 2026

Authored By Prime Research | Published at: Jul 31, 2026 09:08 AM IST

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Tech Stocks Roar Back on Microsoft’s Historic Gain

U.S. stocks rebounded sharply, led by a rally in technology. The Nasdaq Composite led with a 2.8% gain, while the S&P 500 rose 1.7% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 1.2%.

Microsoft shares surged 16%, adding a record $450 billion in market capitalisation — the largest single-day gain in Wall Street history. The rally followed blowout earnings, with profit up 31%, easing investor concerns that AI infrastructure spending was outpacing cash generation. The optimism spread to other AI-cloud names: Nebius jumped 27%, CoreWeave 24%, and Oracle 7%, in a broad risk-on move.

Amazon also cheered investors after hours, reinforcing the narrative that AI infrastructure spending is starting to pay off. Meta Platforms was the exception, falling roughly 8% and extending its losing streak to 11 consecutive sessions, on soft revenue guidance and lingering doubts about the payback timeline on its capital expenditure.

U.S. GDP growth slowed more than expected in the second quarter, with inflation-adjusted output expanding at an annualised 1.5% as elevated oil and gasoline costs weighed on households and businesses. Consumer spending held up, rising 3.2%, and business investment stayed strong on continued AI-related spending. Weekly jobless claims rose to 197,000, up 9,000 from the prior week, adding to signs of a cooling labour market.

The Bank of England held its Bank Rate at 3.75% at its July meeting. The Monetary Policy Committee voted 6-3 to hold, with the remaining three members favouring a 25-basis-point hike to 4%.

Asian markets rallied today on easing fears that the AI-linked selloff had further to run: South Korea’s Kospi surged 14%, and Japan’s Nikkei rose 4%. Nasdaq and S&P 500 futures pointed higher as well.

The yen spiked nearly 2.4% on suspected government intervention, pulling USD/JPY back from 40-year lows near 160 before it gave back some gains, trading around 160.5. The dollar weakened broadly — also pressured by trader scepticism over Fed Chair Kevin Warsh’s recent inflation comments — pushing EUR/USD to a one-month high near $1.15 and USD/CAD to a six-week low near 1.40.

Nifty extended gains in yesterday’s session by closing 66 points higher at 24,317.

From last Friday’s low of 23,606, the index has rallied 737 points and remains firmly above near-term averages, underscoring a strong uptrend. A sustained move above 24,368 could open the path toward the next resistance at 24,530, while the 24,040–24,140 band is expected to act as support on declines.

Indian markets are set to open on a positive note on encouraging global cues

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