$Microsoft(MSFT)$ Microsoft (MSFT) shares are up roughly 4% on Thursday after the company recorded blockbuster earnings for its fiscal fourth quarter. In its earnings release, the tech behemoth also revealed that a quarterly increase of 39% in Azure revenue pushed its overall cloud services sales past $75 billion in fiscal 2025. Including its post-earnings gain, Microsoft stock is up some 55% versus its year-to-date low set in April. Microsoft Stock Soars on Upbeat Guidance Microsoft shares are pushing to the upside this morning also because management’s guidance for $75.25 billion in revenue in the current quarter came in better than the $74.09 billion consensus. More importantly, their outlook for 37% annua
Market performance in 1H 2025 The first half of 2025 proved exceptionally volatile for US equities. Market turbulence stemmed from trade policy uncertainties, Federal Reserve decisions, and escalating Middle East tensions. The VIX surged to 52 in April following President Trump's country-specific tariff announcements on 2 April. This marked the highest level since the COVID-driven selloff in March 2020. Despite a maximum 19% drawdown between February and April, the S&P 500 demonstrated remarkable resilience. The index recovered all losses within three months, finishing the half-year at 6205 points, up 5.5%. Both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 achieved new record highs in June. The Nasdaq gained 7.9% to 22,679 points, while the Dow Jones rose 3.6% to 44,095 points. Sector performance re