US tech stocks rally in sign of optimism

Apple, Microsoft, HP, Google, AMD and Nvidia all see shares rise

The Nasdaq clawed its way back by six per cent last week

US tech stocks saw a big boost last week, as the Nasdaq clawed its way back by six per cent, and firms such as Apple, Microsoft, HP, AMD, Nvidia, Ingram Micro and Google saw their shares jump.

The biggest winner of the week was battered chip firm AMD, which saw its flagging shares shoot up by 26.2 per cent, the highest since early November 2008.

The boost was thought to come partly from the positive buzz surrounding AMD's soon to be released Opteron server processors and their benefits within virtualised environments. But the hike is surprising nonetheless, considering that rival Intel is set to launch its new Nehalem EP processor this week.

Meanwhile, HP shares rose by 15.5 per cent, Microsoft by 6.3 per cent, Apple by 5.2 per cent, Google by 5.3 per cent, Intel by 5.3 per cent, Avnet by 7.7 per cent and Tech Data by 9.8 per cent.

The legal spat between Intel and Nvidia also seems to have done little to damage Nvidia's stock, as the company's shares were up 9.8 per cent.

Ingram Micro was another big winner on Wall Street, after a distribution deal with Dell saw its shares jump 14 per cent. Dell's rose only 0.7 per cent.

Despite all the joy and optimism, however, there was one notable tech loser last week. Struggling internet portal Yahoo dropped a further 3.1 per cent.