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The stock market closed the week higher as markets digested a barrage of strong earnings reports from Big Tech firms while weighing the Federal Reserve’s divided policy decision and fresh uncertainty around global oil supply.

The U.S. central bank was in the spotlight after keeping its policy rate unchanged at 3.50%-3.75% for a third straight meeting, citing uncertainty over the economic outlook. There was an unusual split in the voting during the gathering, which saw four dissenting votes, the highest level of dissent since 1992.

Meanwhile, the United Arab Emirates said it’s exiting the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and OPEC+ following a strategic review of its energy policy and a need for greater flexibility in managing oil production. The UAE has reportedly expanded its production capacity to around 5M barrels per day and wants the ability to utilize that capacity more fully outside OPEC quotas.

On the earnings front, results continued to drive sharp stock-specific moves. Apple (AAPL) reported quarterly numbers that exceeded Wall Street expectations, as the iPhone 17 line continues to impress consumers. What’s more, the big three cloud service providers—Amazon (AMZN), Google (GOOG) (GOOGL), and Microsoft (MSFT)—demonstrated to investors that heavy spending on AI is paying off in spades.

For the week, the S&P (SP500) gained +0.9%, the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (COMP:IND) advanced +1.1%, and the blue-chip Dow (DJI) increased +0.6%. Read a preview of next week’s major events in Seeking Alpha’s Catalyst Watch.

The United Arab Emirates officially left the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries this week after nearly six decades and quit the broader OPEC+ alliance as well. Its decision was based on national interest and its commitment to “meeting the market’s pressing needs.” Now that it’s no longer subject to the OPEC’s production quotas, the UAE can use its spare capacity to pump more oil and pursue new energy strategies. Read more.

Seeking Alpha’s Calls Of The Week

Why Visa (V) Is A Strong Buy After Q2 Results.

It’s Time To Load Up On SoFi Technologies (SOFI).

Seagate (STX) May Be The Best Memory Stock.

SCHD Is Beating The Market At 3x The Yield.

Solid Power (SLDP): Good Commercial Prospects.

There’s Nothing To Wake American Tower (AMT) Up.

Why I Won’t Buy POET Technologies’ (POET) Dip.

Antero Midstream (AM): I Like Everything But The Price.

Noble (NE): Market Pricing In Long-Term Oil Bull Market.

Luckin Coffee (LKNCY): Evidence Of Cannibalization.

Weekly Movement

U.S. Indices
Dow +0.6% to 49,499. S&P 500 +0.9% to 7,230. Nasdaq +1.1% to 25,114. Russell 2000 +0.9% to 2,813. CBOE Volatility Index -9.2% to 16.99.

S&P 500 Sectors
Consumer Staples +1.1%. Utilities +0.7%. Financials +0.9%. Telecom +4.5%. Healthcare +0.7%. Industrials +0.3%. Information Technology +0.1%. Materials -2%. Energy +3.2%. Consumer Discretionary +0.4%. Real Estate +1.3%.

World Indices
London -0.2% to 10,364. France -0.5% to 8,115. Germany +0.7% to 24,292. Japan -0.3% to 59,513. China +0.8% to 4,112. Hong Kong -0.8% to 25,777. India +0.3% to 76,914.

Commodities and Bonds
Crude Oil WTI +8% to $101.94/bbl. Gold -1.7% to $4,661.4/oz. Natural Gas +10.2% to 2.78. Ten-Year Bond Yield -0.2 bps to 4.378.

Forex and Cryptos
EUR/USD -0.01%. USD/JPY -1.46%. GBP/USD +0.32%. Bitcoin +0.8%. Litecoin -0.9%. Ethereum -0.7%. XRP -2.8%.

Top S&P 500 Gainers
Centene (CNC) +28%. Seagate Technology Holdings (STX) +24%. NXP Semiconductors N.V. (NXPI) +21%. Intel (INTC) +21%. Sandisk (SNDK) +20%.

Top S&P 500 Losers
Teradyne (TER) -17%. Builders FirstSource (BLDR) -16%. Pentair plc (PNR) -14%. Robinhood Markets (HOOD) -13%. Alexandria Real Estate Equities (ARE) -13%.