S&P 500 Capital Expenditure Surges 38% in Q1; Tech Giants' 2026 Capex Set to Hit $75.5B

According to Goldman Sachs, S&P 500 companies' capital expenditure in Q1 2026 grew 38% year-over-year, while share buybacks increased just 1%, marking a reversal from post-financial-crisis trends. The bank's report identifies a capital expenditure super-cycle driven by artificial intelligence investments and geopolitical factors, with five major tech companies—Amazon, Meta, Google, Microsoft, and Oracle—expected to spend approximately $75.5 billion on capex in 2026, up 80% from a year prior.

Goldman Sachs noted that capital expenditure momentum is spreading from data centers to energy, industrial, and infrastructure sectors, partly driven by rising defense spending linked to geopolitical tensions.