Investors’ appetite for Tech rises ahead of Apple’s earnings

Awaiting Apple’s earnings, scheduled after the bell, investors’ enthusiasm for technology equities grew. Following a turbulent Wednesday, US market indexes were rising as Jerome Powell, the chair of the Federal Reserve, gave investors some comfort from their growing concern of an interest rate hike.

He did, however, also say that the bar for reducing rates had increased, casting even more doubt on the timing of potential cuts. The attention now turns to two significant set pieces: payroll statistics on Friday morning and Apple’s quarterly report. April job growth in the US is predicted by economists to be 240,000, down from March’s gains.

Thursday saw a retreat in gains for the Dow Jones Industrial Average and other major stock indices as Wall Street processed the Labour Department’s monthly jobless claims data. Following the announcement of a significant increase in profitability and a first-quarter sales beat, Carvana’s shares shot up more than 37%. Sprouts Farmers Market, Qualcomm, DoorDash, eBay, Etsy, Paycom Software, and Shake Shack are some of the other major earnings drivers.

Apple is scheduled to release its profits after the market closes. According to a FactSet survey of analysts, the company should make $1.50 per share on $90.3 billion in sales during the March quarter. Investors, aware of concerns of sluggish demand, particularly in China, will be eagerly monitoring the company’s iPhone sales. The company’s services division is anticipated to perform well in the March quarter.