Microsoft and Alphabet Have Best Week in Years Amid Bank Turmoil

  • Nasdaq 100’s weekly gain far outpaces the move in the S&P 500
  • Strong balance sheets are part of attraction in safety trade

Microsoft Corp. advanced 12% and is flirting with its best week in nearly eight years.

Photographer: Victor J. Blue/Bloomberg
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A miserable week for US banks has been a boon for the shares of the nation’s biggest technology companies as traders flock toward their cash-rich balance sheets amid concerns about contagion in the financial sector.

More than $560 billion in market value has been added to the four biggest US technology and internet companies this week. Microsoft Corp. advanced more than 12%, its biggest weekly jump since April 2015, and it closed at its highest since August. The week’s advance also brought the stock’s market capitalization back above $2 trillion.