Swingfolio Daily — US Markets
US briefings — Thursday, July 30, 2026
Pre-market setup and closing-bell recap for Thursday, July 30, 2026. Observations only — no trade advice.
Thursday, July 30, 2026
US Pre-Market, 30 July 2026: Microsoft Lifts Futures a Day After the Fed's Hawkish Hold
S&P 500 futures are up 0.70% and Nasdaq 100 futures 1.55% after MSFT.US rose 9.16% pre-market on a fourth-quarter revenue and Azure beat, while META.US fell 10.21% on second-quarter EPS of $6.18 against $7.22 expected. Wednesday's hawkish Fed hold, with three members voting for a hike, drove the Dow down 1,153.18 points for its worst session since April 2025. June PCE prices fell 0.1% on the month and slowed to 3.7% year over year, and Q2 GDP grew at a 1.5% annual rate.
S&P 500 Closes Up 1.66% as Microsoft Gains 15.51% and Semiconductors Rebound 8.19%
The S&P 500 closed at 7,437.63 on 30 July 2026, up 121.48 points or 1.66%. Microsoft MSFT.US rose 15.51% after Azure revenue grew 43% and passed $100 billion for fiscal 2026, and the PHLX Semiconductor Index gained 8.19% to end five consecutive losing sessions. Meta META.US fell 7.95% on an EPS miss and higher capital spending guidance. The equal-weight S&P 500 fell 0.16% on the same day, so the gain sat in a narrow set of large technology names. Amazon and Apple reported after the close.