S&P 500 Closes at New Record High on May 1, Capping $8.1T April Tech Rally

The S&P 500 sealed a fresh all-time high close on May 1, 2026, powered by Apple's Q2 earnings beat ($111.18B revenue, +14-17% Q3 guide) and falling crude prices easing inflation fears. The index first topped 7,000 on April 16 at 7,041.28, hit 7,165.08 on April 24 via Intel's 23% surge, reached 7,173.91 on April 27 amid AI hype, and surged further on Alphabet (+9%), Qualcomm (+15%) beats amid U.S.-Iran truce progress. April added $8.1T in market value with Q1 profits up 14.4% to $608B and 82% beats, though Shiller CAPE near 39-41 signals caution.