S&P, Nasdaq set records as market shifts focus to Fed
The S&P 500 was up 0.7% to hit another record on Thursday as it nears a new round-number milestone of 6,000. The Nasdaq 100 climbed 1.5% and finished with an all-time high as well. The Russell 2000 slid 0.4%.
In a well-telegraphed move, the Federal Reserve cut its policy rate by 25 basis points to 4.5%. Treasury yields briefly moved above their lows in the afternoon before tumbling again. The policy-sensitive 2-year yields were down eight basis points to 4.2%, while the 10-year fell 11 basis points to 4.33%. The Dollar Spot Index dropped 0.7%.
Among major sectors, energy, financial, and industrials retreated — all three were atop Wednesday’s gainers list as the market digested the US election results.
The technology sector advanced 1.8%, mostly lifted by mega caps. Meta rose 3.4%; Google went up 2.4%. Tesla extended Wednesday’s gains and rose 2.9%.
In corporate news, Arm Holdings rose 4.1%, despite releasing a lackluster earnings report. Vistra, S&P 500’s best performer of the year, reported earnings and saw its stock surge 7.7%. Conversely, Match lost 17.9%, its biggest one-day drop on record.
