NEW YORK, New York – AI set the scene for solid gains in technology shares on Thursday. Demand for Alphabet and Advanced Micro Devices dominated, triggering a megacap rally as hopes for artificial intelligence spiralled.

“Today it’s an AMD-Google rally. There’s a contagion effect across the market. Everyone wants to get on the bandwagon,” Jay Hatfield, CEO of Infrastructure Capital Management in New York told Reuters news agency Thursday.

“We’re kind of in this weird market, a tag-team market, where one day tech leads, and then the next day value and the broad market lead,” he added.

S&P 500 (^GSPC): The S&P 500 closed at 4,585.59, gaining 36.25 points or an increase of 0.80 percent. The market cap stood at 2.417 billion.

Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI): The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished at 36,117.38 Thursday, adding 62.95 points, representing a rise of 0.17 percent. The trading volume reached 285.722 million.

NASDAQ Composite (^IXIC): The NASDAQ Composite exhibited notable strength, closing at 14,339.99 with a gain of 193.28 points, equivalent to a robust increase of 1.37 percent. The trading volume recorded was 5.144 billion.

Thursday’s Latest Foreign Currency Quotes see Softer U.S. Dollar, Japanese yen a stand-out

Thursday saw positive movements against the greenback in the world foreign exchange markets on Thursday. The Japanese yen in particular made a significant gain against the dollar. Here’s a recap of the latest currency quotes approaching the U.S. close:

EURUSD – Euro / US Dollar:
The Euro to US Dollar exchange rate settled at 1.0799, marking an increase of 0.33 percent or +0.0035.

USDJPY – US Dollar / Japanese Yen:
The US Dollar to Japanese Yen exchange rate concluded at 143.60, reflecting a decrease of 2.52 percent or -3.70.

USDCAD – US Dollar / Canadian Dollar:
The US Dollar to Canadian Dollar exchange rate settled at 1.3596, showing a minimal increase of 0.02 percent or +0.00033.

GBPUSD – British Pound / US Dollar:
The British pound to US Dollar exchange rate closed at 1.2591 Thursday, indicating a rise of 0.25 percent or +0.00315.

USDCHF – US Dollar / Swiss Franc:
The US Dollar to Swiss Franc exchange rate concluded at 0.8750, reflecting a marginal increase of 0.03 percent or +0.0002.

AUDUSD – Australian Dollar / US Dollar:
The Australian Dollar to US Dollar exchange rose solidly to 0.6606, showing an increase of 0.88 percent or +0.00576.

NZDUSD – New Zealand Dollar / US Dollar:
The New Zealand Dollar to US Dollar exchange rate settled at 0.6173, indicating a rise of 0.63 percent or +0.00385.

Global Stock Markets Wrap-Up: Thursday Closing Quotes see Falls in Europe & Asia

Worldwide financial markets experienced mixed performances on Thursday, with several key indices witnessing slight fluctuations. Shares in Europe and Asia closed mostly lower. Here’s a roundup of the closing stock market quotes for Thursday across major indices:

CANADA

S&P/TSX Composite index (^GSPTSE): The S&P/TSX Composite index in Toronto, Canada closed at 20,278.51, gaining 4.30 points, reflecting a marginal increase of 0.02 percent. The trading volume stood at 240.873 million.

UNITED KINGDOM

FTSE 100 (^FTSE):
The FTSE 100 in London closed at 7,513.72, showing a marginal decline of 1.66 points or -0.02 percent from the previous session.

EUROPE

DAX PERFORMANCE-INDEX:
Germany’s DAX index concluded at 16,628.99, marking a decrease of 27.45 points or -0.16 percent.

CAC 40 (^FCHI):
France’s CAC 40 index settled at 7,428.52 Thursday, exhibiting a decrease of 7.47 points or -0.10 percent.

ESTX 50 PR.EUR (^STOXX50E):
The Eurozone’s ESTX 50 PR.EUR index closed at 4,473.77, down by 9.49 points or -0.21 percent.

Euronext 100 Index (^N100):
The Euronext 100 Index settled at 1,375.49, reflecting a decrease of 0.90 points or -0.07 percent.

BEL 20 (^BFX):
Belgium’s BEL 20 index concluded at 3,656.90, showing a decline of 0.80 points or -0.02 percent.

RUSSIA

MOEX Russia Index (IMOEX.ME):
Russia’s MOEX Russia Index settled at 2,222.51 Thursday, down by 4.14 points or -0.19 percent.

ASIA

Nikkei 225 (^N225):
Japan’s Nikkei 225 index experienced a significant drop, closing at 32,858.31, down by 587.59 points or -1.76 percent.

HANG SENG INDEX (^HSI):
The Hang Seng Index from Hong Kong concluded at 16,345.89, down by 117.37 points or -0.71 percent.

SSE Composite Index (000001.SS):
China’s SSE Composite Index settled at 2,966.21, witnessing a marginal decline of 2.73 points or -0.09 percent.

Shenzhen Index (399001.SZ):
The Shenzhen Index closed at 9,519.91, down by 13.34 points or -0.14 percent.

STI Index (^STI):
Singapore’s STI Index closed at 3,074.26 Thursday, down by 12.98 points or -0.42 percent.

S&P BSE SENSEX (^BSESN):
In India, the S&P BSE SENSEX settled at 69,521.69, down by 132.04 points or -0.19 percent.

NIFTY 50 (^NSEI):
India’s NIFTY 50 meanwhile settled at 20,901.15, showing a decline of 36.55 points or -0.17 percent.

IDX COMPOSITE (^JKSE):
Indonesia’s IDX COMPOSITE index closed at 7,134.62, up by 47.23 points or +0.67 percent.

FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (^KLSE):
Malaysia’s FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI settled at 1,442.85 Thursday, down by 2.97 points or -0.21 percent.

KOSPI Composite Index (^KS11):
South Korea’s KOSPI Composite Index concluded at 2,492.07, down by 3.31 points or -0.13 percent.

TSEC weighted index (^TWII):
Taiwan’s TSEC weighted index closed at 17,278.74, down by 81.98 points or -0.47 percent.

OCEANIA

S&P/ASX 200 (^AXJO):
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 index concluded at 7,173.30 Thursday, reflecting a decrease of 5.10 points or -0.07 percent.

ALL ORDINARIES (^AORD):
The Australian ALL ORDINARIES index concluded at 7,384.70, reflecting a decrease of 2.00 points or -0.03 percent.

S&P/NZX 50 INDEX GROSS (^NZ50):
New Zealand’s S&P/NZX 50 INDEX GROSS closed at 11,496.61, up by 33.11 points or +0.29 percent.

AFRICA

Top 40 USD Net TRI Index (^JN0U.JO):
The Top 40 USD Net TRI Index settled at 3,924.60 Thursday, showing a decline of 25.28 points or -0.64 percent.

MIDDLE EAST

TA-125 (^TA125.TA):
Israel’s TA-125 index settled at 1,831.77, reflecting a decrease of 3.45 points or -0.19 percent.

EGX 30 Price Return Index (^CASE30):
Egypt’s EGX 30 Price Return Index concluded at 24,686.20, down by 17.30 points or -0.07 percent, with a traded volume of 234.73 million.