US stocks rose to eke out fresh record highs on Thursday, as Nvidia (NVDA) ticked higher following a major milestone and bitcoin (BTC-USD) surged to a new record amid fresh tariff threats from President Trump.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) rose around 0.4% on the heels of a winning day for the major gauges. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 (^GSPC) added about 0.3% to close at a fresh record of 6,280.46, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) rose 0.1%, to notch its second straight all-time high.

AI chipmaker Nvidia edged higher to close just above $4 trillion market cap, after becoming the first public company to ever cross the threshold.

Meanwhile, bitcoin vaulted to a fresh all-time high, breaking above $113,000 as investors went risk-on across assets.

Markets were making sense of Trump's latest salvos on tariffs, which have done little to sap the ebullient mood that has pervaded for more than two months. After Wednesday's market close, Trump issued his most stringent threat yet, threatening Brazil with rates of 50% on its imports.

Meanwhile, Delta (DAL) kicked off second quarter earnings season with its report. Shares of the airline jumped 12% as the carrier restored its earnings outlook, citing "greater clarity" as trade deals get done.
Market focus remains on potential trade pacts with bigger US trading partners, such as the EU, India, and Canada. While Trump has said a pact with India is close, the odds have narrowed after he warned of an extra 10% tariff on BRICS members.

Amping up the pressure for deals, Trump has sent 22 letters to the heads of countries this week. Each has a similar formula, dictating the tariff rates he says will apply to their imports starting Aug. 1.

In other news, jobless claims for the week ending July 5 were 227,000, a 5,000 decline from the previous week's revised level. The update comes as investors look for signs of how quickly the labor market is cooling as an indication of when the Federal Reserve will move to cut rates.