Markets Mostly Up on Mid-East Wheeling, Dealing

Economic Developments - President Trump's Middle East tour is resulting in significant deals for American corporations, including Boeing's commitment to send over 200 jets to Qatar Airways and $142 billion in military equipment investments to Saudi Arabia [1] - Additional investments in Saudi infrastructure will involve supplies from AMD and Cisco, with Cisco's products being sent to a company chaired by Mohammed bin Salman [1] Market Performance - The Dow Jones Industrial Average increased by 271 points (+0.65%), while the S&P 500 rose by +0.41% and the Russell 2000 gained +0.52% [2] - The Nasdaq, which has seen a +13% increase over the past month, experienced a decline of -7% due to an SEC investigation into Coinbase and a cybersecurity hack [2] - Meta's shares fell by -2.3% following reports of a delay in its AI rollout [2] Earnings Reports - Applied Materials (AMAT) reported fiscal Q2 earnings of $2.39 per share, exceeding expectations by 8 cents, but revenues of $7.1 billion were slightly below forecasts [3] - Take Two Software (TTWO) faced a significant one-time impairment charge, missing fiscal Q4 earnings expectations, although revenues were slightly better than expected at $1.58 billion [3] - Cava Group (CAVA) outperformed estimates with earnings of 22 cents per share and revenues of $332 million, with same-store sales growing +11% year over year [4] Upcoming Economic Indicators - The upcoming trading session will feature Import and Export Prices, as well as Housing Starts and Building Permits for April [5] - A preliminary Consumer Sentiment survey for May is also expected [6]