Micron Hits $1 Trillion as Iran Peace Talks Send S&P 500 and Nasdaq to Fresh All-Time Highs

The S&P 500 and Nasdaq rose to fresh all-time highs on Tuesday, led by technology, as traders weighed the prospects of a potential U.S.-Iran deal being reached to end the war. Tuesday's gains were driven by shares of Micron Technology, which surged 19% to top $1 trillion in market capitalization for the first time, while investors were also encouraged by messages from President Trump indicating that talks with Iran to end the war were "proceeding nicely." Shares soared after UBS nearly tripled its price target on the chipmaker, saying the stock should rerate higher as investors better understand the impact of artificial intelligence on the memory industry. Meanwhile, today's earnings calendar is packed: April new home sales data are due and expected earnings from Dick's Sporting Goods, Marvell Technology, Salesforce, Synopsys, and Snowflake are on tap.

Kevin Warsh was sworn in as the new chair of the Federal Reserve on May 22, succeeding Jerome Powell at the helm of the world's most consequential central bank, with his confirmation appearing to close an unusually turbulent chapter in the institution's recent history. The war in Iran has created an oil price shock rippling through the global economy and pushing inflation back up, while the job market shows signs of stabilizing — all of which undermines the case for rate cuts the president badly wants. Inflation reached a three-year high in April and has been running well above the Fed's 2% target for months — even before the Middle East conflict drove fuel costs higher this spring. The CME FedWatch Tool shows almost no chance for a 2026 rate cut and — after the recent bearish April CPI and PPI — factors in a much higher chance of an inflation-fighting rate hike. On the earnings front, Q1 results remain broadly strong: out of 472 S&P 500 companies that have reported, 74% have beaten on the top line and 82% have beaten on the bottom line, with EPS growth tracking at 27.49%. MoreLess