Friday, February 6, 2026
DJIA
50,115.67
+1,207 (+2.47%)
S&P 500
6,932.30
+134 (+1.97%)
NASDAQ
23,031.21
+491 (+2.18%)
Dow shatters 50,000 milestone as tech rebounds from brutal selloff; Bitcoin bounces from 50% plunge
U.S. stocks staged a powerful Friday rally sending the Dow above 50,000 for the first time in history. The Dow surged 1,207 points (+2.47%) to 50,115.67, S&P 500 jumped 1.97% to 6,932.30, and Nasdaq soared 2.18% to 23,031.21—best day since November. Friday’s rally came after a brutal week where Nasdaq shed $1.5 trillion before rebounding. For the week, Dow rose 2.5%, S&P 500 fell 0.1%, and Nasdaq dropped 1.8%.
The week was dominated by fears AI could disrupt software business models, sparked by Anthropic’s Claude Cowork release. Software stocks entered freefall—iShares Software ETF (IGV) plunged 11%, worst week since 2008. Salesforce fell 29% YTD, Microsoft dropped 5% Thursday. Amazon sank 9% after announcing $200B AI spending. Bitcoin crashed from $128K peak to below $64K (-50%) before stabilizing Friday. Job openings hit 6.54M (lowest since April 2020), adding recession fears.
Market outlook: Friday’s rebound reflected realization that AI spending benefits “pick-and-shovel” chipmakers—Nvidia and Broadcom surged 7% and 6%. Semiconductor ETF jumped 5.7% as investors saw Amazon’s $200B and Alphabet’s $185B AI plans as bullish for chips. Consumer sentiment rose to 57.3, inflation expectations fell to lowest since Jan 2025. Nvidia CEO called AI-replacing-software fears “illogical.” Next week: delayed January jobs (Wed) and CPI (Fri). Dow’s 50K milestone (21 months after 40K) signals rotation toward value.
WEEKLY PERFORMANCE
| Index | Close | Weekly %Chg |
|---|---|---|
| Dow Industrials | 50,115.67 | +2.50% |
| S&P 500 | 6,932.30 | -0.10% |
| Nasdaq Comp | 23,031.21 | -1.80% |
| Russell 2000 | 2,577.65 | +0.10% |
TREASURY YIELDS
| Maturity | Yield | Weekly Chg (bp) |
|---|---|---|
| 2-Year | 3.48% | -4 |
| 10-Year | 4.21% | -5 |
| 30-Year | 4.82% | -5 |
COMMODITIES & CRYPTO
| Asset | Friday Close | Week Change |
|---|---|---|
| Gold (spot, oz) | $4,825 | -1.1% |
| Silver (spot, oz) | $81.20 | -0.9% |
| Bitcoin | $69,881 | -18.0% |
WEEKLY MOVERS
| Stock | Week % Change |
|---|---|
| Nvidia (NVDA) | +3.2% |
| Broadcom (AVGO) | +2.8% |
| Caterpillar (CAT) | +6.4% |
| Salesforce (CRM) | -8.9% |
| Amazon (AMZN) | -11.2% |
WEEK AHEAD
- Jobs Report (Wed): January nonfarm payrolls delayed from Friday to Wednesday. After weak job openings (6.54M, lowest since April 2020), markets watching for labor market weakness.
- CPI Data (Fri): January inflation report crucial for Fed rate cut timing. One-year inflation expectations fell to lowest since Jan 2025.
- Software Reassessment: Can software stocks stabilize after worst week since 2008? Investors weighing AI disruption vs. AI enablement narratives.
- Crypto Watch: Bitcoin needs to hold $64K support after 50% crash from peak. Strategy (MSTR) rallied 23% Friday but remains deeply underwater.
TERM OF THE WEEK
Pick-and-Shovel Play: Investment strategy of buying companies that supply tools and infrastructure to an industry rather than the end product. The term comes from the California Gold Rush—the real money wasn’t made by gold miners, but by those selling pickaxes and shovels. This week perfectly illustrated the concept: as software companies crashed on AI disruption fears (Salesforce -29% YTD) and even Amazon fell 11% on massive AI spending plans, the semiconductor “pick-and-shovel” providers surged. Nvidia and Broadcom jumped 7% and 6% Friday as investors realized that Amazon’s $200B, Alphabet’s $185B, and Microsoft’s massive AI infrastructure spending directly benefits chipmakers. The VanEck Semiconductor ETF soared 5.7% despite tech’s brutal week. Pick-and-shovel plays offer exposure to transformative technologies while reducing risk from any single company’s business model disruption.
