The Nasdaq Composite rose on Wednesday as the latest developments surrounding SpaceX and Tesla led investors to move back into technology.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq added 1.2%, and the S&P 500 traded up 0.7%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 290 points, or 0.6%.
Shares of Elon Musk's SpaceX surged 6% after the company said its revenue grew 161% in the third quarter. Musk also said that SpaceX and Tesla, his auto manufacturer, have formed special committees to discuss a merger. Tesla, which is due to report earnings later, was up more than 3%.
SpaceX's artificial intelligence business grew ninefold, reigniting enthusiasm for stocks related to the trade. Key chipmakers such as Advanced Micro Devices advanced about 3%, while Nvidia rose nearly 2%. Micron Technology and Marvell Technology each grew around 2%. The VanEck Semiconductor ETF (SMH) was up almost 1%.
"SpaceX suggests there is still a longer runway here, but that fundamental tension or experience of getting overly enthusiastic and overly capitalizing things I don't think has changed," said Joe Zidle, Cresset's chief market strategist.