Amazon Leads Charge as US Stocks Rise to End Wild July

The US stock market finished a wild July on Friday with Amazon leading the charge and Apple taking a hit. The S&P 500 climbed 0.7% after veering between gains and losses throughout the day, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 276 points or 0.5%. The Nasdaq composite rallied 1% after briefly losing its early 1.3% jump.

Amazon's stock soared 15.3% as it reported stronger-than-expected profits for the latest quarter, more than tripling from a year earlier due to growth in its cloud computing business. This boost could be a sign that Amazon's massive investments in artificial-intelligence technology are paying off.

In contrast, Apple's stock dropped 7.4% despite reporting stronger-than-expected profits for the latest quarter. However, Apple's forecast for revenue growth in the current quarter fell short of expectations due to supply chain issues related to the AI boom.