Wall Street continues its late 2023 rally with all major indexes up and rate cuts on horizon
NY Post
NEW YORK – U.S. stocks extended their rally on Tuesday, kicking off the final week of 2023 with expectations that the Federal Reserve will begin cutting interest rates as soon as March.
All three major U.S. stock indexes rose in light trading a day after the Christmas holiday, with the S&P 500 touching its highest intraday level since January 2022. All three are on track for monthly, quarterly and annual gains.
Interest rate sensitive megacap stocks and chip shares led the upward momentum.
On Friday, the three indexes notched their eighth straight weekly gains — their longest weekly winning streaks in years — as economic data indicated inflation is easing down closer to the Fed’s average annual 2% target.
“The momentum stays towards the upside,” said Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Spartan Capital Securities in New York, noting however that a strong rally was unlikely in light trading.
“We had a good inflation number on Friday. If inflation continues to move down in January and February, there’s a good chance that the Fed may cut (rates) earlier than anticipated.”
