The S&P 500 extended its record run overnight, trading to 3509.50. Fed Chair Powell delivered all that was expected yesterday, announcing Average Inflation Targeting.
Analysts expect Powell to announce the committee’s policy shift to Average Inflation Targeting. We discussed the concept earlier this week. It is as it sounds; inflation has run below the Fed’s 2% target for an extended period.
Strength in stocks continues early this week ahead of the Jackson Hole symposium. U.S./China trade talks are expected to start making progress as China increases Crude Oil purchases.
The S&P has finally taken out the February highs, and news of fast-tracking a Covid-19 vaccine before the November elections is giving stocks an additional boost.
The Nasdaq-100 index closed at a fresh record yesterday, and the S&P 500 battled to settle positive, 1% off its overnight low. This sounds like a healthy session, but not for anything other than tech behemoths.
Yesterday, the S&P 500 index failed to tag its record high from February 19 by 2 points and began slipping after the release of the FOMC minutes. With the failed high under its belt, the Federal Reserve’s reluctance to implement yield curve control weighed on risk-assets broadly and strengthened the U.S. dollar.
After battling a very brief stint with volatility early yesterday, the S&P 500 index and Nasdaq-100 extended their ranges higher into the close. The S&P 500 finished one quarter of a point below its all-time closing high from February 19.
Home Depot’s 2nd quarter report early this morning reinvigorated a quiet overnight tape. The “do it yourself” narrative during the Covid-19 pandemic was a key driver for the company whose sales and profit surged by 23% and 25% from a year ago.
