Jul. 30 at 1:52 AM
U.S. stock index futures rose Wednesday night, led by a sharp rally in Microsoft after the company delivered stronger-than-expected quarterly results and reassured investors about its AI spending plans. S&P 500 futures gained 0.36%, Nasdaq 100 futures climbed 0.7%, and Dow futures added 0.3%.
Microsoft surged nearly 9% in after-hours trading as Azure cloud growth and AI demand drove earnings and revenue above expectations. Investors also welcomed the company's decision to trim its 2026 capital expenditure forecast to
$175 billion from
$190 billion, easing concerns about excessive AI infrastructure spending.
In contrast, Meta fell about 7% after reporting weaker-than-expected Q2 results and issuing disappointing Q3 guidance. The company also raised the lower end of its 2026 capital spending range to
$130-
$145 billion, highlighting continued heavy AI investment. The results come ahead of key earnings reports from Amazon and Apple.
$MSFT $META $AMZN $AAPL