Nasdaq Index: Corning Joins AMD and Nvidia in AI Trade Surge

Nasdaq Hits Record as AMD and Nvidia Drive the AI Trade Higher

The Nasdaq Composite pushed to a new record high Wednesday at 25,741.14 and the move was not a surprise. Advanced Micro Devices beat earnings expectations and issued strong guidance tied to AI demand. Nvidia announced a partnership with Corning to expand fiber-optic production for AI data centers. Treasury yields dropped. Oil pulled back. Every driver that has been running this market for a month showed up again on the same day.

Technical Outlook

The uptrend continued in the Nasdaq Composite (IXIC) on Wednesday with prices hitting a new record high at 25,741.14.

The nearest support is a series of minor pivots at 25,327.13, 25,116.49 and 24,970.97. This is followed by minor bottoms at 24,913.12, 24,491.83 and 24,199.00.

There is nothing that indicates the rally won’t continue into the close or even Thursday morning. This rally is being driven by cash and new deals. I have seen little reaction for more than a month to war, high oil prices, and Fed policy. Sure, they’ve been in the headlines, but the news hasn’t been strong enough to derail the rally.

The rally stops when the new money stops and when traders start asking for results and not just deals. Technically, a closing price reversal top will be the best sign of a major top, but not without major follow-through selling. Otherwise, a one-day break will just signal investors taking a breather.

Time will tell us when the market is ready to turn too. Since March 30, all I’ve seen are one-day dips then four to six day rallies. Until that pattern breaks and the down time starts to come in greater than the uptime, expect the trend to continue.

AMD Lit the Fuse

Advanced Micro Devices surged Wednesday after delivering forecasts that told the market exactly what it wanted to hear. AI demand is real and enterprise spending on AI hardware is not slowing down. Data-center growth is accelerating. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index hit record levels on the back of that report and the rotation into high-growth technology names ran all session. I’ve watched AMD move markets before but Wednesday’s reaction was broad. When one chipmaker delivers that kind of guidance, the entire sector reprices around it and that is exactly what happened.

Nvidia and Corning Added Fuel

Nvidia advanced Wednesday and the Corning partnership announcement added another layer to the AI infrastructure story. The two companies said they would expand domestic fiber-optic manufacturing capacity for optical connectivity products critical for AI systems.

Corning jumped sharply on the news. What that deal tells the market is that the AI trade is not just about chips anymore. It is about everything that carries the data those chips are processing. Networking, fiber optics, connectivity infrastructure. Investors who have been focused only on semiconductors got a reminder Wednesday that the build-out runs deeper than that.

Yields and Oil Helped

Treasury yields moved lower Wednesday and growth stocks felt it immediately. Lower yields raise the appeal of future earnings growth for high-valuation sectors and technology is the first place that shows up. The drop in crude oil on Iran peace headlines eased inflation concerns that have been sitting underneath this market for weeks. The CBOE Volatility Index moved lower as investors came back into technology and growth names. When fear drops and yields drop at the same time, the Nasdaq doesn’t need another reason to climb.

What I’m Watching

I’ve been watching this market put in one-day dips followed by four to six day rallies since March 30 and the pattern has not broken. That is the tell. War headlines haven’t broken it. High oil prices haven’t broken it. Fed policy hasn’t broken it. The money keeps coming in and the deals keep getting announced and the market keeps going higher.

The rally stops when the new money stops. It also stops when traders shift from rewarding deals to demanding results. Right now the market is still in the deal-rewarding phase. AMD delivered results and got rewarded. Corning announced a deal and got rewarded. Nvidia kept building its infrastructure story and got rewarded. Until that dynamic changes the path of least resistance stays higher.

The support levels to watch on any pullback are the minor pivots at 25,327.13, 25,116.49 and 24,970.97. A one-day break into those levels is not a trend change. It is investors taking a breath before the next leg. A closing price reversal top with strong follow-through selling is what changes the picture. I haven’t seen that yet. Until I do, the buy-the-dip trade stays intact and the record highs keep coming.

The upcoming non-farm payrolls report, Federal Reserve commentary, and the next round of earnings are what determine whether this momentum carries into the back half of the week.

More Information in our Economic Calendar.