Indexes Notch Back-to-Back Record Closes as Soft PCE Data Calms Rate Fears

All three major U.S. stock indexes closed at records for a second consecutive session on May 28, with the Nasdaq Composite rising 0.9%, the S&P 500 gaining 0.6%, and the Dow adding 0.1%. April's monthly PCE inflation print came in at 0.4% — below the 0.5% consensus — while core PCE rose just 0.2% versus the 0.3% expected, easing near-term rate anxiety and pushing the 10-year Treasury yield down to 4.46%.

Snowflake Surges 36% on $6 Billion AWS AI Contract; Microsoft Leads Mag Seven Higher

Snowflake (SNOW) rocketed 36% on May 28 after beating analyst estimates and announcing a landmark $6 billion AI deal with Amazon Web Services, underscoring enterprise demand for cloud-based data infrastructure. Six of the Magnificent Seven stocks closed higher on the session, with Microsoft (MSFT) leading the group with a 3.5% advance.

Oil Retreats as US-Iran Peace Deal Optimism Builds; Strait of Hormuz Risk Fades

Crude oil prices pulled back through the back half of the week as diplomacy around a potential U.S.-Iran agreement gained visible momentum — including a Qatari mediation team flying into Tehran — and President Trump said he was nearing a "final determination" on deal terms. Brent crude settled around $103 on May 22 before easing further, down sharply from the highs touched earlier in May when 30-year Treasury yields briefly hit their highest level since 2007 on fears of prolonged Middle East conflict.

Meta Rises on Subscription Plans; Nasdaq Logs 8% Monthly Gain as Tech Leads May Rally

Meta Platforms (META) surged nearly 4% on May 27 after announcing plans to sell subscriptions to "enhanced" versions of its social-media products, adding a recurring revenue angle to its ad-dominant model. With tech leading the charge all month, the Nasdaq Composite is up approximately 8% for May — making it one of the index's strongest monthly performances of the year.

Asian Markets Join the Rally; South Korea's Kospi and Japan's Topix Reach New Peaks

Global risk appetite strengthened this week as South Korea's Kospi and Japan's Topix both reached new highs, mirroring the bullish tone set on Wall Street and suggesting the peace-deal-driven relief rally is broadening beyond U.S. borders. European stocks also closed higher as investors weighed the potential for a ceasefire extension in the Middle East, reinforcing the thesis that geopolitical de-escalation — not just U.S. macro data — is doing meaningful heavy lifting for global equities.

Market Insight

This week crystallized a pivotal macro tension that will likely define summer trading: inflation is cooling at the margins — April's monthly PCE came in at 0.4% versus a 0.5% consensus, and core PCE held at 0.2% — yet the year-over-year headline rate ticked up to 3.8% from 3.5%, and first-quarter GDP was revised down to 1.6% from 2.0%. That combination — slowing growth, sticky annual inflation, and a flat April personal income reading — pins the Federal Reserve in a difficult position where cutting rates risks reigniting price pressures while holding them risks further economic deceleration. Bond markets felt this acutely: the 10-year Treasury yield touched its highest level in over a year mid-week before retreating to 4.46% on Thursday's softer data, and the 30-year briefly reached its highest point since 2007. For equity investors, the record closes in the S&P 500, Nasdaq, and Dow reflect a market that is, for now, choosing to celebrate the "miss lower on inflation" signal rather than price in the growth warning — a bet that requires Iran diplomacy to hold and the next inflation prints to cooperate.