What's expected at Apple's September event -- plus, an uneven rally in AI stocks

Markets were higher Thursday, but the rally wasn’t broad. The S&P 500 was up about 0.75% and the Nasdaq roughly 1.5%, with technology the only sector in the green and software leading the gain. Shares of Salesforce and CrowdStrike jumped about 20% after both reported beat-and-raise quarters. Salesforce also announced an AI partnership with Anthropic, lifting sentiment and the iShares Expanded Tech-Software Sector ETF for the year. Meanwhile, AI infrastructure stocks mostly lagged even after Nvidia’s ~10% rebound and fresh demand comments. Apple is scheduled to hold a Sept. 9 launch event, expected to feature a foldable iPhone.