Each of the major U.S. stock indexes made weekly gains, Yahoo Finance reported on Saturday, while European stocks recorded their highest one-day gain in the last two months.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite index jumped 2.19% to 12,975.69 while the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 1.00% to 33,093.34. The S&P 500 rose 1.30% to 4,205.45.
In Europe, the STOXX 600 index closed 1.2% higher on Friday, thereby recovering from Thursday’s eight-week low. Among Europe’s leading stocks on the day were Swedish gaming company Embracer with a 13.1% rise and French car parts maker Faurecia which added 7.5%.
Stock market gains come after the release of promising U.S. economic data, with consumer spending emerging stronger than expected. This resurgence in personal consumption expenditures (PCE) has raised expectations that the Federal Reserve will implement another interest rate hike in either June or July.
Chip stocks also rallied amid optimism surrounding artificial intelligence. Marvell Technology led the charge, surging 30% as markets closed on Friday. Nvidia Corp, the world’s most valuable chipmaker, gained 2.54%, building on Thursday’s gains after the company raised its economic outlook for the year.