Global Business Weekend: Record Highs, AI Shake-ups, Oil Bears & Major Deals
Global markets surged to new milestones by mid-August. On Friday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average hit an all-time intraday high, becoming the last of the big three U.S. indexes to join 2025’s record-setting rally reuters.com. It briefly surpassed its previous peak as blue-chip stocks caught up with earlier highs in the S&P 500 and Nasdaq reuters.com. “We have certainly waited a long time this year for the Dow… to join the new high club with the Nasdaq and S&P,” noted Art Hogan of B. Riley Wealth reuters.com. A 9.5% spike in UnitedHealth – after Warren Buffett’s Berkshire revealed a stake – helped propel the Dow’s climb reuters.com. Tech giants also buoyed indexes; Microsoft, Goldman Sachs, Caterpillar, and an AI-fueled Nvidia led year-to-date gains reuters.com.