SPX: S&P 500 Rallies 1.6% on Upbeat Retail Sales Data. Bitcoin, Gold Get Left Behind

US stocks had a blast Thursday after data showed the mighty US consumers upped their spending by more than expected in July.

• The S&P 500 index posted a sharp rise Thursday after data showed the American consumer remains in good shape. The broad-based Wall Street average added 1.6% on the day, outpacing the Dow Jones Industrial Average with its 1.4%, but getting outpaced by the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite, which soared 2.3%. A powerful comeback swept markets, but left a few big players out of the picture.
• Bitcoin fell behind as a megacap loser. The OG crypto asset declined on the day, closing with a 2% drop to $58,300. Another major one — gold — briefly rose but then nearly wiped out all its daily gains to close at mostly unchanged levels around $2,450 per ounce. The two top dogs were largely neglected in the Buy Everything rally as the piles of cash were getting dumped on stocks across the board.
• Retail sales data for July was what powered stocks higher, but left Bitcoin and gold behind. Retail sales — a measure of spending at stores, online and in restaurants — pumped at a seasonally adjusted 1% in July from June, overshooting estimates. The data surprised markets where lingering recession fears had clouded the outlook and knocked optimism. Strong Walmart earnings helped improve the sentiment.