S&P 500 hits a new high driven by AI giants, masking the weakness of the U.S. stock market

Despite the S&P 500 Index closing at a historic high this week, the rally was primarily driven by companies benefiting from the artificial intelligence boom, overshadowing signs of weakness in the U.S. economy and financial markets. Companies like Meta, Microsoft, and Nvidia performed strongly, while stocks in the consumer, travel, transportation, real estate, and financial sectors declined.

When the S&P 500 Index reached its historic high, only 30% of its constituent stocks were trading above the 50-day moving average.