The S&P 500 index climbed 5% during the four trading days ended August 4, a move that has occurred only three times in the past three decades. The prior instances were on April 23, 1999, March 21, 2000, and November 9, 2020. The 1999 and 2000 occurrences preceded significant losses during the dot-com bust, while the 2020 instance was followed by a strong run until the 2022 bear market amid pandemic-era dynamics. The recent rebound was fueled by strong earnings from major AI companies such as Microsoft, Amazon, and Palantir, along with easing U.S.-Iran tensions, though concerns persist over hyperscaler capital expenditures exceeding $700 billion this year and potential market froth.
