Friends
The bulls are feeling pretty good about things right now. Stocks keep pushing higher and the narratives are becoming more and more supportive to higher stock prices. Inflation data as well as jobs data are supporting the belief that the Fed will lower the Fed Funds rate in coming meetings. Inflation data is supporting the view by not being too bad, and jobs data is supporting the view by not being too good. The likelihood of a Fed becoming more accommodative is fueling this leg higher in the market averages.
As for today, by the close the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 463 points to finish the day at 44,922. The S&P 500 was up 20 points to close at 6,466. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 31 points to close at 21,713. Gold was up $7 to trade at $3,406 per ounce, while oil was down $.37 to trade at $62.80 per barrel WTI.
Earnings season was good, and good earnings added to an accommodating Fed can provide a substantial tail wind for stocks. Add to that that I think market participants have basically just decided to ignore tariffs at this point, as no one knows exactly what they will be or what their effect will be on the economy. For now, the bulls aren’t only occupying the high ground, they’ve begun building permanent housing structures.
Have a nice evening everyone.
