Wall Street is riding a wave of optimism this week, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite both smashing through intraday record highs on September 10, 2025. The rally comes on the heels of unexpectedly cool inflation numbers and a flurry of dramatic corporate moves, all of which have investors, analysts, and even the Federal Reserve sitting up and taking notice.
According to Reuters, the catalyst for this surge was the latest U.S. producer price data for August, which showed a surprise decline. Instead of the 0.3% rise economists expected, the Producer Prices Index (PPI) ticked down by 0.1%, a sharp reversal from July’s 0.7% increase. The drop was largely driven by lower service costs, and it’s a development markets are greeting with open arms. Adam Sarhan, CEO of 50 Park Investments, summed up the mood: “Any and all signs that inflation is coming down... (are) welcomed with a big please and thank you from the market and from the Fed.”
This cooling inflation has rekindled hopes for interest rate cuts from the Federal Reserve. CME’s FedWatch tool showed traders betting with 90% certainty on a 25-basis-point reduction at the Fed’s next meeting on September 16-17, with a smaller 10% betting on a more aggressive 50-basis-point cut. Recent labor market data, which confirmed a slowdown in U.S. job growth, have only added fuel to these expectations.
With the prospect of easier borrowing costs on the horizon, technology stocks have led the charge. Oracle, in particular, stole the spotlight. The cloud computing giant’s shares soared an eye-popping 35% in a single day—their biggest one-day jump since 1992—after the company forecast that booked revenue at its Oracle Cloud Infrastructure business would exceed half a trillion dollars. As reported by Investopedia, Oracle’s market capitalization is now approaching $1 trillion, making it the 10th-largest publicly traded American company and vaulting it past corporate titans like JPMorgan Chase and Walmart.
The Oracle effect rippled through the technology sector. Chipmakers Nvidia, Advanced Micro Devices, and Broadcom all posted impressive gains—3.6%, 3.1%, and 6.2%, respectively, according to Reuters. The broader semiconductor index jumped 2.2% to a record high. Data center power suppliers, including Constellation Energy, Vistra, and GE Vernova, also benefited, each rising about 5%.
But not every corner of the market was basking in the glow. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 85.24 points (0.19%) to 45,626.10 at 9:41 a.m. ET, weighed down by declines in consumer discretionary stocks and a nearly 3% drop in Apple shares following the launch of the iPhone 17. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 rose 31.47 points (0.48%) to 6,543.78, and the Nasdaq Composite added 74.71 points (0.33%) to 21,952.25, as reported by Reuters.
Other assets also responded to the shifting winds. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note, which influences borrowing costs across the economy, dipped below 4.05% from 4.09% just before the PPI data was released, marking its lowest level since early April. Bitcoin surged to near $114,000, while gold futures hovered near all-time highs at around $3,680 an ounce. Crude oil futures (West Texas Intermediate) rose 2% to about $64 per barrel, continuing a three-day streak of gains after a recent slump. The U.S. dollar index edged down to 97.71, reflecting a slight weakening of the greenback.
While the technology sector basked in Oracle’s glow, not all tech names had reason to celebrate. Synopsys, a major provider of semiconductor design software, saw its shares plunge about 35% after missing quarterly earnings expectations and lowering its full-year outlook. CEO Sassine Ghazi described it as a “transformational quarter” amid a “challenging geo-political backdrop,” but investors were less than reassured. The company’s design intellectual property sales dropped 8%, and its projected earnings for the rest of the year came in well below analyst forecasts.
Elsewhere, the buy now, pay later firm Klarna is set to make its stock market debut on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker “KLAR.” The company sold 34.3 million shares at $40 each, suggesting a market value approaching $14 billion. The payment method, which allows consumers to split purchases into interest-free installments, has surged in popularity and is now so mainstream that Fair Isaac Corp. plans to include it in its credit scoring models.
The cryptocurrency world had its own blockbuster moment as Gemini Space Station, the exchange founded by the Winklevoss twins, raised its IPO range to $24–$26 per share, aiming for a market capitalization over $3 billion. Nasdaq, which agreed to invest $50 million privately, will pay the IPO price for its stake. Gemini expects to offer as much as 30% of its Class A shares to retail investors via Robinhood and SoFi, tapping into the fervor of individual traders.
On the corporate front, Novo Nordisk, the Danish pharmaceutical giant known for its diabetes and weight-loss drugs Wegovy and Ozempic, announced it would cut about 9,000 jobs—11.5% of its workforce—in a bid to streamline operations and focus resources on its core medicines. CEO Mike Doustdar explained, “Our markets are evolving, particularly in obesity, as it has become more competitive and consumer-driven. We must evolve as well.” The company expects the layoffs to save about $1.25 billion annually by 2026, though it will incur restructuring costs of the same amount this year. Novo Nordisk’s shares, listed in the U.S., rose about 2% on the news, though they remain down a third for the year as competitors like Eli Lilly gain ground.
In the housing market, there are tentative signs of a thaw. Mortgage applications surged 9% in the week ending September 5, 2025, after the average 30-year fixed mortgage rate fell to 6.49%, the lowest since October 2024. Joel Kan, deputy chief economist at the Mortgage Bankers Association, noted, “The downward rate movement spurred the strongest week of borrower demand since 2022, with both purchase and refinance applications moving higher.”
Political drama was also in the mix. A federal judge temporarily blocked President Donald Trump from removing Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook, following her lawsuit contesting her firing. Judge Jia Cobb ruled that Trump could not dismiss Cook—who had been accused of falsifying mortgage documents—because the alleged actions occurred before her tenure at the Fed. This means Cook will remain on the central bank’s seven-member board, which, alongside the 12-member committee, sets U.S. interest rates. The move was seen as a legal setback for the White House and raised fresh concerns about the independence of the Federal Reserve, especially as the next rate-setting meeting approaches.
Looking ahead, all eyes are now on the U.S. consumer prices reading due September 11, 2025, which will provide further insight into the inflation trajectory. Wall Street’s strong start to September—a month historically tough for equities—has been buoyed by hopes that the Fed will finally pivot to rate cuts. But as always, the next data point could change the story yet again.
For now, though, the mood is buoyant, with investors, companies, and policymakers all watching for the next twist in this high-stakes economic drama.
