Shares of Amazon.com Inc. closed higher on Friday, February 20, 2026, gaining 2.6% to finish the trading session at $210.11. The stock moved within a range of $203.85 to $211.11 during the day. The advance coincided with a broader rally in technology stocks, propelling the Nasdaq Composite Index up by 0.9%.
Court Ruling Lifts Tariff Overhang
The catalyst for the market move was a decision by the U.S. Supreme Court, which voted 6-3 to overturn global tariffs instituted by former President Donald Trump. The ruling was immediately criticized by Trump, who labeled it a "disgrace" and vowed to impose a new 10% global tariff for 150 days using a different legal statute. Market analysts viewed the court's action as a removal of uncertainty for tariff-sensitive equities. Mike Dickson, Head of Research and Quantitative Strategies at Horizon Investments, noted, "Today is a removal of some uncertainty."
For retailers and consumer brands, the threat of higher import taxes has been a persistent concern, as such costs typically lead to more expensive goods for consumers or compressed profit margins, or both. Mark Malek, Chief Investment Officer at Siebert Financial, observed, "The market read is straightforward: tariff-sensitive equities breathe easier." However, he cautioned that the underlying political incentives for tariffs remain intact. Amazon's unique position as both a direct retailer and a platform for third-party sellers places it directly at the intersection of these trade policy impacts.
Economic Backdrop and Legal Challenges
The tariff relief arrived amid a mixed U.S. economic landscape. Recent data showed the economy expanded at a 1.4% annualized rate in the fourth quarter. The core Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) price index, the Federal Reserve's preferred inflation gauge which excludes food and energy, rose 0.4% in December, bringing the year-over-year pace to 3.0%. Michael Pearce, Chief U.S. Economist at Oxford Economics, stated, "The core of the economy is resilient." Despite this, economists surveyed by Reuters do not anticipate an interest rate cut from the Fed before its June 16-17 policy meeting.
Separately, Amazon continues to navigate legal challenges beyond market fluctuations. This week, the Washington Supreme Court ruled that lawsuits could proceed against the company. The cases involve families seeking damages over deaths linked to sodium nitrite sold by third-party vendors on Amazon's marketplace. Amazon has stated it disagrees with this ruling.
AWS Incident and AI Investment Scramble
Earlier on Friday, attention was briefly directed toward Amazon Web Services (AWS) following a disclosure about a December outage. According to reports, a 13-hour disruption affected a cost-management tool after engineers allowed the Kiro AI coding tool to implement changes. Amazon described the incident as "extremely limited," attributing it to a specific user error in one region rather than a systemic AWS failure. The Financial Times characterized Kiro as an "agentic" tool capable of acting autonomously for users.
Investors are also closely monitoring the intense competition for leadership in artificial intelligence. Reports indicate that Nvidia is nearing a commitment to invest $30 billion in OpenAI, as part of a broader fundraising effort that could exceed $100 billion. Other technology giants, including SoftBank and Amazon, are expected to participate, underscoring the deepening financial and strategic ties between major chip designers, cloud providers, and AI model developers.
Earnings and Policy in Focus
For Amazon, an immediate question is how shifts in trade policy will ripple through consumer demand and pricing, particularly for segments reliant on imported inventory. A decline in input costs can provide a quick boost, but the benefit may manifest either in expanded profit margins or increased sales volume, not always aligning with Wall Street expectations.
The stock's trajectory also intersects with the broader market's scrutiny of AI investments. Traders are keen to determine whether massive capital outlays are translating into tangible revenue growth and if customers will continue to pay for expanded computing capacity. Recently, market sentiment toward the sector has been volatile, with minor catalysts prompting significant moves.
All eyes are now on Nvidia Corporation, which is scheduled to report its quarterly results on Wednesday, February 25. The report is expected to draw intense scrutiny from investors searching for concrete signs that heavy spending on AI infrastructure is yielding financial returns. Amazon's stock could also see a reaction based on Nvidia's numbers, as well as any new developments on trade policy or inflation when U.S. markets reopen on Monday.
