New York, April 30, 2026 Stocks rise with mixed tech earnings as oil prices fall U.S. stocks edged higher on Thursday as lower crude oil prices offset mixed earnings from mega-cap tech companies, while the Strait of Hormuz remained effectively closed, exacerbating global energy concerns.
Market Performance and Earnings
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.20%, while the S&P 500 gained 0.39% and the Nasdaq 100 climbed 0.17%, reaching a new all-time high. Despite the broader market uptick, tech giants delivered mixed results. Alphabet reported Q1 revenue ex-TAC of $94.57 billion, surpassing the consensus estimate of $91.57 billion. Qualcomm surged more than 16% after posting stronger-than-expected Q2 adjusted revenue of $10.60 billion.
However, Meta Platforms tumbled over 9% after issuing a higher-than-anticipated capital expenditure forecast. Microsoft also declined more than 4% despite beating Q3 earnings expectations. Overall, 80% of the 247 S&P 500 companies that have reported Q1 earnings so far exceeded estimates, with Bloomberg Intelligence projecting a 12% year-over-year increase in earnings.
Economic Indicators and Central Bank Moves
The U.S. economy grew at a slower-than-expected pace of 2.0% in Q1, while weekly jobless claims dropped to a 57-year low of 189,000. The March core PCE price index rose 0.3% month-over-month and 3.2% year-over-year, signaling persistent inflation pressures. Meanwhile, the April MNI Chicago PMI unexpectedly fell 3.6 points to a four-month low of 49.2, indicating contraction in business activity.