[New York Stock Exchange Briefing] Optimism for Q2 Earnings... S&P500 and Nasdaq Hit All-Time High Again

FactSet: "More than 85% of major companies are expected to exceed estimates"

The Nasdaq Composite Index and S&P500 index once again set record highs as optimism over the second quarter earnings of companies spread. On the 21st (local time) at the New York Stock Exchange, the S&P500 index closed at 6,305.60, up 0.14% from the previous trading day. The Nasdaq Composite Index also ended the session at 20,974.18, up 0.38%. Both set new all-time records. In contrast, the Dow Jones Industrial Average, consisting of blue-chip stocks, fell 0.04% to 44,323.07.

With the Q2 earnings season in full swing, optimism about the earnings of big tech companies scheduled to be announced this week brought warmth to the market. Market research firm FactSet estimated that, as of today, over 85% of the 62 S&P500 companies reporting Q2 earnings would surpass expert forecasts.

Last week, major US banks reported results that beat expectations, and Verizon, the largest telecommunications company, also announced earnings that exceeded market expectations today, pushing its stock price up by 4.04%.

Among major tech firms, Alphabet—the first to report earnings on the 23rd—saw its shares rise by 2.8%, while Tesla, which also reports earnings the same day, fell by 0.35%. Amazon rose 1.40% and Meta increased by 1.23%. NVIDIA, which had repeatedly set new highs recently, closed down by 0.6% today.

Trump Media, the parent company of Truth Social, mostly owned by former US President Donald Trump, surged 3.11% after announcing the acquisition of Bitcoin worth $20 trillion.

Key officials of the Trump administration reaffirmed August 1 as the deadline for tariff negotiations while leaving room for further talks.

Howard Lutnick, US Secretary of Commerce, said in a CBS broadcast interview the previous day, "The new tariff rates will be applied on August 1, but after that, countries can still negotiate with us." Scott Besant, US Secretary of the Treasury, told CNBC, "Rather than quickly reaching trade agreements with countries before the 1st of next month, it is more important to secure high-quality deals."

No Jung-Dong, Hankyung.com Reporter dong2@hankyung.com