U.S. stocks ended higher on Wednesday, with the S&P 500 extending its winning streak to five consecutive sessions, after encouraging inflation data reinforced bets that the Federal Reserve would start cutting interest rates in September. All three major indexes ended in positive territory.
How Did The Benchmarks Perform?
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) rose 0.6% or 242.75 points, to end at 40,008.39 points. The S&P 500 gained 0.4% or 20.78 points, to close at 5,455.21 points. Technology and financial stocks were the biggest gainers. The Technology Select Sector SPDR (XLK) rose 0.6%. The Financials Select Sector SPDR (XLF) gained 1.2%, while the Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR (XLP) gained 0.5%. Seven of the 11 sectors of the benchmark index ended in positive territory. The tech-heavy Nasdaq climbed just 0.03% or 4.99 points to finish at 17,192.60 points, recording its fifth consecutive day of gains. The fear-gauge CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) was down 10.65% to 16.19.
Stocks Rally on Encouraging Inflation Data
Investors have been looking forward to the key consumer price index (CPI) data, which was released on Wednesday. The CPI data for July came in impressive, which was largely anticipated following the release of the producer price index data, which was released on Tuesday. The CPI increased a meager 0.2% month over month in July, which came in line with the consensus estimate. Year over year, CPI increased 2.9% in July, lower than the economists’ expectations of a rise of 3%. Core CPI, which excludes the volatile energy and food prices, also increased 0.2% month over month in July, in line with expectations. The CPI report comes a day after softer-than-expected PPI data gave a boost to the market rally. Wednesday’s report further reassured investors betting that the Fed with start its easing cycle in September. Markets are now pricing in a 55% chance of a 50 basis point rate cut in September, according to the Fed’s CME FedWatch Tool.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq suffered early losses but rebounded by the end of the day to close in the green. The index was dragged down by Alphabet, Inc (GOOGL). The company’s shares declined 2.3% following reports that the Department of Justice was considering splitting up the search engine giant. Alphabet has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). This weighed on other megacap tech companies. Shares of Microsoft Corporation (MSFT) declined 0.7% while Meta Platforms, Inc. (META) fell 0.3%.
Investors will now be eagerly waiting for the retail sales data which is scheduled to be released on Thursday. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report. Microsoft Corporation (MSFT) : Free Stock Analysis Report. Alphabet Inc. (GOOGL) : Free Stock Analysis Report. Meta Platforms, Inc. (META) : Free Stock Analysis Report. To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research.