U.S. equities advanced Friday, with the Nasdaq Composite adding 0.98% to 21,450.02 for a second consecutive record close. The S&P 500 gained 0.78% to 6,389.45 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.47% to 44,175.61, as technology megacaps extended their rebound. Apple led the rally, jumping 4.2% on the day and 13.3% for the week—its strongest five-day performance since 2020—after pledging an additional $100 billion of U.S. investment. Technology and communication-services shares posted fresh highs, helping the three benchmarks secure weekly gains of 3.9% for the Nasdaq, 2.4% for the S&P 500 and 1.3% for the Dow. Investors cited rising odds of monetary easing—CME data show an 89.4% chance the Federal Reserve will cut rates by a quarter-point in September—following softer economic readings and President Donald Trump’s nomination of Council of Economic Advisers chair Stephen Miran to a vacant Fed board seat. While new tariffs on a broad range of imports took effect this week, market participants expect lower borrowing costs to offset trade uncertainty. Attention now shifts to next week’s consumer-price index release, which will test whether the momentum that has delivered 18 record Nasdaq closes this year can withstand persistent inflation and tariff risks.