Wall Street Eyes Strong August Finish: Powell Speech Cleared, Nvidia Earnings Looming

Markets exhale as Powell's remarks fade into rearview—all eyes now locked on Nvidia's impending earnings bomb.

The Fed Checkpoint Cleared

Jerome Powell’s latest commentary stirred little drama—traders shrugged and moved on. No surprises, no panic. Just another central banker speaking carefully into a microphone.

Nvidia: The Real Market Mover

While the Fed talks, Nvidia builds. Its earnings report isn’t just a data point—it’s a momentum engine. Wall Street’s betting big on another blowout quarter.

August’s Final Push

With macro noise fading, equities push for a strong monthly close. Tech leads, crypto watches, and everybody’s pretending they knew it all along.

Because nothing says 'healthy market' like hanging every rally on one chip stock's earnings call.

Markets react to Powell’s comments and Nvidia’s upcoming earnings

On Friday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped more than 900 points, or about 2%, during intraday trading, enough to register a new all time high, as Cryptopolitan reported earlier.

The Russell 2000 surged by over 3%, and the S&P 500 Equal Weight Index broke past its previous high set in November 2023, according to data from CNBC.

Semiconductors shot higher, regional banks moved; even large-cap tech saw a big snapback. The Magnificent Seven had their best session since May, with nearly $370 billion in market value added by the close, roughly the same size as Procter & Gamble.

The next test for this rally hits next week when Nvidia releases earnings. Analysts expect the chipmaker to beat expectations again, as it has throughout the artificial intelligence boom.

But these results are coming at a tense moment. The company’s exposure to China has become a problem, thanks to policy moves under President Donald Trump’s administration and regulatory pushback from Beijing.

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang confirmed on Friday that he is now talking with the U.S. government about shipping a different version of its H20 chip to China, one that complies with updated export controls.

Nvidia is also preparing to give 15% of its China chip revenue to the U.S. government in return for a license to keep selling there. Despite the geopolitical risk, analysts are still bullish. Harsh Kumar, semiconductor analyst at Piper Sandler, said, “We anticipate a meaningful uptick in estimates on the Street for Nvidia, when these earnings are done.” Harsh still maintains a buy rating on the stock.

July inflation data could support September rate cut

Also landing next week is the July Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) price index, which the Fed uses as its preferred measure of inflation. Economists expect core PCE to rise 2.9% year-over-year, just slightly above June’s 2.8% reading. This uptick is expected to reflect new costs coming from tariffs, but nothing that WOULD derail the case for a rate cut.

Even if inflation edges higher, Wall Street doesn’t seem too worried. Sam said, “Investors are well aware of short-term hurdles. So, next week, I think, should end up being a positive week.” With Powell’s tone already leaning dovish, and signs of cooling inflation, markets look ready to brush off minor bumps.

As of Friday, the Dow is up over 3%, leading the major indexes. The S&P 500 has gained 2%, while the Nasdaq Composite, home to the big tech names, is lagging behind with a rise of just over 1%. Even that gain is notable, given the pressure tech stocks have faced all month.

With Powell’s speech behind them, Nvidia’s report on deck, and inflation data coming soon, traders are betting August could close out a winner for once.

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