S&P 500 and Nasdaq Close at Fresh Records

Wall Street got its rally back on Wednesday, April 22, with the S&P 500 rising 1.05% to 7,137.90 and the Nasdaq Composite gaining 1.64% to 24,657.57, both new closing highs. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 340.65 points, or 0.69%, to 49,490.03. The immediate catalyst was a renewed risk-on move after President Donald Trump extended the U.S. ceasefire with Iran, but earnings did a lot of the heavy lifting too, especially in tech and industrials. CNBC reported that the market also looked through another jump in oil prices, a sign investors were willing to buy growth again.

That matters because this was not just a defensive bounce. Bloomberg noted that chipmakers extended a 16-session winning streak and that the month is shaping up to be the S&P 500's best since 2020, underscoring how quickly traders have rotated back into cyclicals and AI-linked names after the latest Middle East scare. Bloomberg

Boeing and GE Vernova Lead the Stock Movers, Tesla Adds After the Bell

The standout movers in regular trading were old-economy winners, not the usual mega-cap suspects. Boeing rose 5.5% after reporting a much smaller first-quarter loss than analysts expected, helped by improving deliveries and signs that its operating recovery is gaining traction. Boeing said first-quarter revenue rose to $22.2 billion on 143 commercial deliveries, while its backlog reached a record $695 billion. Reuters via U.S. News Boeing

GE Vernova jumped nearly 14% after first-quarter revenue topped expectations, according to CNBC. Late in the session, attention shifted back to semis and EVs. Texas Instruments issued a stronger-than-expected second-quarter outlook, with revenue guidance of $5.0 billion to $5.4 billion versus analyst estimates near $4.85 billion, helped by data-center and industrial demand. Reuters via U.S. News Bloomberg

Tesla also gave traders something to work with after the close. The stock had finished the regular session around $387.51, then rose about 3% in after-hours trading after first-quarter results beat expectations and the company posted positive cash flow, even as management flagged higher capital spending ahead. Yahoo Finance Reuters via U.S. News

Treasury Yields Edge Higher as Traders Parse Warsh and the Fed

Rates moved up, but not dramatically. The 10-year Treasury yield rose to 4.305%, the 2-year yield climbed to 3.80%, and the 30-year yield reached 4.909% on Wednesday, according to CNBC. Treasury's official daily rates for April 22 confirm the market was still sitting in a relatively tight range, which suggests investors are not yet pricing a major shift in the policy path despite the inflation risk coming from energy. U.S. Treasury

The policy angle is getting more interesting. Traders are still digesting comments from Fed chair nominee Kevin Warsh after his confirmation hearing, where he sought to project independence from the White House. That keeps the focus on whether the Fed can stay patient if oil remains elevated while growth data softens. For now, the 2-year holding below 4% says the market still expects rate cuts later this year, but higher crude prices make that trade less comfortable. CNBC

Oil Back Above $100 Keeps Inflation Risk in Play

Commodities are where the market's stress is still visible. Brent crude settled above $101 a barrel, the highest in about two weeks, as traders weighed the ceasefire extension against fresh signs of disruption around the Strait of Hormuz. Reuters reported that Brent had already settled up about 3% on Tuesday and then climbed further after conflicting headlines around diplomacy and shipping security. Reuters via U.S. News Bloomberg also reported Brent settling above $101 in New York trading. Bloomberg

That backdrop matters more than the equity rally. Early Thursday, Reuters said U.S. stock futures slipped as investors paused for more clarity on the U.S.-Iran conflict after Iran seized two ships in the Strait of Hormuz. Reuters Gold has remained firm in that environment, though price action was steadier than oil's. The bigger message for traders is simple: if Brent stays above $100, inflation expectations and rate volatility can come back fast, even with equities at records.

Crypto Joins the Risk-On Trade, but the Move Is Still Selective

Crypto participated in Wednesday's rebound, though it wasn't the main event. Bloomberg said Bitcoin rallied alongside the broader risk move, while market snapshots during the U.S. session showed Bitcoin trading around $77,400. Bloomberg The Motley Fool

By Thursday, the tone looked more mixed. Some market trackers showed Bitcoin hovering around the upper $77,000s to low $78,000s, while Ethereum was near $2,340 to $2,360. That's a decent rebound, but not a breakout that changes the broader macro picture. For cross-asset traders, crypto is still behaving more like a high-beta risk gauge than a safe haven. Benzinga

Thursday's Data and Earnings Could Test the Rally

The next test is whether the market can hold record highs once Thursday's hard data and earnings hit. The U.S. calendar for April 23 includes initial jobless claims, S&P Global flash PMIs, EIA natural gas inventories, and the Kansas Fed manufacturing index. According to the latest calendar readings, initial claims came in at 207,000, below the 218,000 consensus, while the flash composite PMI printed 50.3, with manufacturing at 52.3 and services at 49.8. Trading Economics New York Fed

On earnings, Thursday's lineup is busy and market-relevant: American Express, Lockheed Martin, Blackstone, American Airlines, Freeport-McMoRan, Nasdaq, Honeywell, Comcast, Union Pacific, Thermo Fisher and, after the close, Intel and KLA. That's a wide enough spread to move financials, transports, industrials, copper and semis all in one session. Earnings Whispers TipRanks

What to Watch Today

Can the S&P 500 hold above 7,100? Wednesday's close at 7,137.90 put the index at another record, but futures were softer early Thursday.
Oil and the Strait of Hormuz: Brent above $100 remains the cleanest measure of geopolitical stress.
Rates reaction: Watch whether the 10-year Treasury yield stays near 4.30% or pushes higher on stronger data and energy inflation fears.
Claims and PMI follow-through: Lower jobless claims and a still-expanding manufacturing PMI support risk assets, but the sub-50 services reading bears watching.
Earnings before the bell: American Express, Lockheed Martin, Blackstone, Honeywell, Comcast, Union Pacific and Freeport-McMoRan could reshape sector leadership.
After the close: Intel and KLA are the key semiconductor read-throughs after Texas Instruments' upbeat forecast.
Tesla post-earnings trade: Watch whether the after-hours gain carries into cash trading and spills over into the broader EV complex.