Microsoft & Meta Earnings Boost Tech Stocks; US-Ukraine Deal on Natural Resources

Tech Stock Surge on Strong Earnings

• 🚀 Microsoft shares jumped over 8% following stronger-than-expected quarterly sales and profit, with its Azure cloud unit showing a 33% revenue gain, 16% of which was attributed to AI.
• 💡 Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella anticipates the cloud unit to grow up to 35% in the current quarter, signaling confidence in continued AI investment.
• 📈 Meta Platforms stock rose 6% after reporting first-quarter revenue that beat expectations, with CEO Mark Zuckerberg highlighting over 3.4 billion daily active users across its apps.
• 💰 Meta forecasts additional spending of $64 billion to $72 billion this year, partly due to tariffs, but expects continued growth and sees AI improving ad targeting.

Upcoming Tech Earnings and Trade War Concerns

• ⚠️ Investors are awaiting earnings from Apple and Amazon, with a focus on their reliance on China, potential impacts of Trump tariffs, and their AI development.
• 🍎 Apple's heavy reliance on China for iPhone production makes it vulnerable to tariffs, potentially leading to price hikes or production shifts.
• 📉 The Bank of Japan is pushing back its inflation target and slashing growth forecasts due to the darkening global economic outlook from trade wars.

US-Ukraine Deal and Geopolitical Developments

• 🤝 The US and Ukraine reached a deal for access to Ukraine's natural resources, including aluminum, graphite, oil, and natural gas, providing assurance of continued US support.
• 🇺🇸 This deal is seen as a guarantee of US involvement in Ukraine's peace talks with Russia and aims to attract global investment through a jointly managed fund.
• ⚖️ Senator Lindsey Graham is pushing for sanctions against Russia if President Putin does not engage seriously in ceasefire talks, proposing significant tariffs on energy purchases and a ban on US citizens buying Russian sovereign debt.

Other News and Sports Updates

• 🗣️ Former Vice President Kamala Harris delivered a critique of President Donald Trump, accusing him of abandoning American ideals.
• ⚖️ A Columbia University student arrested during a citizenship interview was released by a federal judge, who stated individuals cannot be detained solely for lawful speech.
• 🥍 11 teenagers from the West Hill High School men's lacrosse team turned themselves in for a hazing incident involving an apparent gun and knife.
• ⚾ In baseball, Aaron Judge hit his 26th career homer at Camden Yards, finishing April with a .427 batting average, though the Yankees lost to Baltimore.
• 🏀 The Lakers' season ended with a loss to Minnesota in the NBA playoffs, while the Knicks and Warriors are leading their respective series.
• 🏒 The Capitals and Panthers advanced in the Stanley Cup playoffs, both winning their series in five games.