US Stock Market Today Live Updates: S&P 500, Nasdaq futures fall amid risks to US-Iran peace talks; Nvidia in focus

After witnessing strong growth last year, global electric car sales are expected to rise further in 2026, reaching 23 million units and accounting for nearly 30% of all cars sold worldwide, according to the latest edition of the International Energy Agency’s annual Global EV Outlook report.

In 2025, global electric car sales grew by 20% to surpass 20 million units, meaning one out of every four new cars sold worldwide was electric. In nearly 40 countries, electric vehicles accounted for 10% or more of total new car sales.

On the production front, Chinese automakers supplied 60% of electric cars sold globally, while European and North American manufacturers each contributed around 15% of worldwide sales, the report showed.

China produced nearly three-quarters of the almost 22 million electric cars manufactured globally last year. With production exceeding domestic demand, Chinese electric car exports doubled to a record high of more than 2.5 million units.

President Donald Trump vowed on Thursday that the United States will eventually recover Iran's stockpile of highly enriched uranium despite comments from Iran that it will not hand over the material.

"We will get it. We don't need it, we don't want it. We'll probably destroy it after we get it, but we're not going to let them have it," Trump told reporters at the White House.

Iran is believed to possess about 900 pounds of highly enriched uranium, which Trump says was buried by US and Israeli airstrikes nearly a year ago.

President Donald Trump called off a Thursday signing ceremony for a new order on artificial intelligence because he worried it could dull America’s edge on AI technology.

Trump said he was postponing the signing because he didn’t like what he saw in the order’s text. He announced the change hours before the event was scheduled to take place in the Oval Office, AP reported.

“We’re leading China, we’re leading everybody, and I don’t want to do anything that’s going to get in the way of that lead,” Trump told reporters at an unrelated Oval Office event.

Precious metals witnessed renewed selling pressure in Thursday's trade, 21 May, as the rebound in crude oil prices heightened inflation concerns, boosting expectations of further US rate hikes and lifting Treasury yields and the dollar, which added pressure on safe-haven assets.

Comex gold fell by $47 per troy ounce to an intraday low of $4,488 , while silver futures declined more sharply by $1.5 per ounce to $74.69. Since the start of the war in late February, the gold has lost 14% and silver was down by 18.3%.

Shares of Spotify jumped 18% to a two-week high of $510 apiece after the music streaming platform outlined its 2030 guidance during its first investor day since 2022.

The company projected revenue growth at a compounded annual growth rate in the mid-teens, along with gross margins in the range of 35% to 40%. According to CNBC, Spotify described its long-term ambition of reaching 1 billion subscribers and generating $100 billion in revenue as its “north star.”

Meanwhile, Reuters reported that Spotify has struck a deal with Universal Music Group to allow subscribers to create AI-generated covers and remixes of songs. The move marks the first time the audio-streaming giant will enable users to produce AI-generated content directly on its platform.

The US dollar firmed on Thursday, with the dollar index rising to 99.41 against a basket of currencies after Iran’s Supreme Leader said the country must retain its uranium, according to Reuters, tempering optimism that the warring sides were moving closer to a deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

US President Donald Trump had said on Wednesday that negotiations with Tehran were in the final stages, while also warning of further attacks if Iran does not agree to a deal.

The dollar index has remained largely steady so far in May, rising just 0.1%, with broader currency markets staying relatively calm despite the energy price shock in recent weeks.

Spot gold prices fell 1% to $4,500 per ounce on Thursday as climbing oil prices heightened inflation worries, boosting bets for US rate hikes and lifting Treasury yields and the dollar, which added more pressure on bullion.

The 10-year US Treasury yield rose more than 3 basis points to 4.607%, which set the tone for borrowing costs around the world. It rose along with oil prices and was last trading 3 basis points higher at 4.601%. The longer-dated 30-year Treasury bond yield, which is more sensitive to political risks, advanced over 2 basis points to 5.1334%.

Today’s rise in borrowing costs follows a sharp pullback during the previous session, which came after global bond yields touched multi-decade highs earlier this week on renewed inflation fears. The 10-year Treasury yield had touched a 16-month high of 4.7% on May 19.

Meanwhile, the minutes from the Federal Reserve’s latest policy meeting showed that most officials believe a rate hike this year could still be warranted if inflation remains above the Fed’s 2% target.

Shares of Ralph Lauren gained over 12% to $367 apiece after the company delivered another strong set of financial results. Fourth-quarter revenue rose 17%, driven by growth across all regions, while earnings also increased 17%. However, after several quarters of robust growth, the company projected a more moderate growth outlook for the current fiscal year.

Looking ahead to the next quarter, Ralph Lauren expects revenue to increase by approximately mid- to high-single digits year-on-year on a constant currency basis. For the full fiscal year, the company expects constant currency revenue growth in the mid-single-digit range, centered around 4% to 5%.

Additionally, the company increased its dividend by 10%, taking the new quarterly dividend to $1.00 per share, which is expected to be paid on July 10 to shareholders on record as of June 26.

IBM climbed 8% to $242 apiece after The Wall Street Journal reported that the Trump administration was awarding $2 billion in grants to nine quantum-computing companies, of which IBM is expected to receive nearly $1 billion.

As part of the broader initiative, International Business Machines announced the creation of a new standalone company called Anderon, describing it as “America’s first pure-play quantum foundry.” IBM already operated an internal manufacturing effort for its quantum chips, but the latest move signals an acceleration of those plans.

Under the agreement, both IBM and the US Commerce Department will each contribute $1 billion in cash to Anderon, while IBM will also provide significant intellectual property, assets, and a skilled workforce.

Shares of Bloom Energy surged 8% to $305.75 apiece after the company unveiled a partnership with Europe-based Nebius, which is seeking to overcome power constraints in the ongoing AI infrastructure buildout.

Under the agreement, Bloom Energy will provide electricity for Nebius, with 328 megawatts of installed capacity expected to become operational this year. Nebius will pay up to $2.6 billion over the term of the deal, which is expected to be executed in three phases, each carrying a supply term of 10 years.

Oil gained after a report that Iran’s supreme leader issued a directive to keep near-weapons-grade uranium domestically, a key sticking point in peace negotiations with the US.

Brent traded near $107 a barrel, after sliding 5.6% in the previous session on comments from President Donald Trump that the US was in the “final stages” with Iran.

Reuters reported the Iranian directive was issued over fears that sending the uranium abroad would leave the country more vulnerable to attacks by the US and Israel. Tehran is in the process of responding to a US message that “has narrowed the gaps to some extent,” the semi-official Iranian Students’ News Agency said Thursday.

Nvidia shares remained flat at $223 per share even after the company posted record performance in the first quarter of 2026. The company’s net profit jumped to $58.3 billion, or $2.39 per share, during the first quarter of fiscal 2027, ending April 26, more than tripling from $18.8 billion in the year-earlier period.

Excluding one-time items, Nvidia earned $1.76 per share. Nvidia posted record revenue of $81.62 billion during the first quarter, a surge of 85% from $44.01 billion, year-on-year (YoY).

Nvidia’s results exceeded analyst estimates of $1.75 per share earnings and $78.91 billion revenue, according to a poll by FactSet, as the company remains a primary beneficiary of a global AI infrastructure buildout.

For the current quarter, Nvidia projected revenue of $91 billion, plus or minus 2%. Analysts are forecasting $87.29 billion.

Norbert Rücker, Head of Economics and Next Generation Research at Julius Baer, said observing the oil market feels like watching a tug-of-war tournament. He said escalation concerns have dissipated again, and trade through Hormuz shows some signs of life.

Norbert said that while the dealmaking aspirations of the United States and Iran remain fogged, bilateral agreements between oil sellers, oil buyers, and Iran might explain the Hormuz traffic pickup.

Politics aside, the oil market has moved past the initial shock reaction and has settled in a regime of deficit absorption by inventory draws. There is breathing room to deal with the supply shock beyond the summer.

Norbert added that Julius Baer maintains its view that the current crisis should follow the historical pattern of a short-lived but intense price shock.

According to David Kohl, chief economist at Julius Baer, the minutes from the Federal Reserve’s April FOMC meeting suggest that the US central bank is becoming less willing to signal lower interest rates. He noted that amid an unfolding inflation shock driven by higher energy prices and limited negative growth repercussions, the hurdle for resuming rate cuts appears to be increasing.

Kohl said that with notable labour market weakness becoming less likely and inflation expected to remain above the Fed’s target over the next 12 months, Julius Baer has revised its policy rate outlook. The brokerage now expects the federal funds target range to remain unchanged at 3.50%–3.75% for the remainder of 2026 and throughout 2027.

"Assuming that the neutral level of US policy rates continues to rise, the current Fed policy stance should be considered broadly neutral. We still expect 10-year US Treasury yields to decline from their current level. Given a higher starting point, we are raising our 3- and 12-month forecasts to 4.4% and 4.2%, respectively," David Kohl further said.

Despite the recent drop in crude prices, Vested Finance said the AI trade remains the market’s primary growth engine. Nvidia’s latest earnings once again reinforced how aggressively companies are spending on artificial intelligence infrastructure. However, unlike previous quarters, the brokerage noted that the results failed to trigger another sharp rally in technology stocks, suggesting investors may already be pricing in near-perfect execution.

The brokerage further stated that optimism around artificial intelligence continues to spread globally. Asian technology stocks rallied after Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang highlighted opportunities in robotics and autonomous vehicles. Meanwhile, SoftBank Group shares surged after reports suggested that OpenAI and SB Energy are preparing for IPOs.

Brokerage firm, Vested Finance, said the market is currently balancing two major forces simultaneously. On one hand, AI continues to drive strong earnings, investment inflows, and optimism around future growth.

On the other hand, geopolitical tensions and elevated energy prices continue to pose risks to inflation and bond markets.

Nvidia shares were little changed in premarket trading, hovering around $223. Meanwhile, Intuit sank 13% after the software company said it plans to reduce its workforce by about 17%.

Meanwhile, Tesla advanced 1% after SpaceX, led by Elon Musk, publicly filed for an initial public offering.

IBM climbed 6.3% after The Wall Street Journal reported that the Trump administration was awarding $2 billion in grants to nine quantum-computing companies, of which IBM is expected to receive $1 billion.

GlobalFoundries rose 9.7%, while D-Wave Quantum jumped 19.3%. Rigetti Computing gained 14.6%, and Infleqtion advanced 26%, according to Reuters.

Gold eased today amid a strong dollar and high Treasury yields. Meanwhile, lack of progress in US-Iran peace talks raised oil prices and kept fears of inflation alive, reinforcing bets of higher interest rates.

Spot gold was down 0.6% at $4,517.94 per ounce, as of 1118 GMT. On Wednesday, bullion rose more than 1% in U.S. trading hours after having hit its lowest level since March 30. U.S. gold futures for June delivery lost 0.4% at $4,518.70.

Nvidia shares traded on a flattish note ahead of the Wall Street open in the pre-market session. Investors will react to the AI giant's earnings today. Nvidia reported first-quarter revenue of $81.62 billion, beating analysts' average estimate of $78.86 billion, according to data compiled by LSEG. Data center revenue in the quarter came in at $75.2 billion, compared with the average analyst estimate of $72.8 billion.

(Data source: Reuters)

Nvidia’s earnings once again reinforced how aggressively companies are spending on artificial intelligence infrastructure. But unlike previous quarters, the results failed to trigger another massive melt-up in tech stocks. That suggests investors may already be pricing in near-perfect execution.

At the same time, AI optimism continues spreading globally. Asian tech stocks surged after Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang highlighted opportunities in robotics and autonomous vehicles. SoftBank jumped sharply as reports suggested both OpenAI and SB Energy are preparing for IPOs.

— Vested Finance