S&P 500 notches first record high in two years in tech-driven run
CBSN
The stock market rallied to record highs on Friday, with Wall Street buoyed by investor expectations of interest rate cuts ahead by the Federal Reserve and robust corporate profits.
With technology stocks driving early year gains, the S&P 500 rose 1.2% to a record 4,839, sailing above the broad index's prior closing high of 4,796 in January 2022. The Dow Jones Industrial Average surged nearly 400 points, or 1.1%, and the Nasdaq Composite climbed 1.7%.
"When the stock market last peaked, the Fed had yet to begin raising interest rates to combat inflation" Greg McBride, chief financial analyst for Bankrate, said in an email. "In the two years since, we saw the fastest pace of interest rate hikes in 40 years. With inflation now moving back toward the target of 2%, the focus is on when the Fed will begin trimming interest rates."
