Wall Street Indexes Rested Near Record Highs Amid Soft Landing Optimism

Barry Adams
20 Sep, 2024
New York City

Market indexes traded around the flatline on Wall Street as investors focused on the positives of the Fed's jumbo-sized rate cut on Wednesday. 

The S&P 500, the Nasdaq Composite, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average traded at or near record highs, boosted by the market enthusiasm over the Fed's latest cut and signaling of additional cuts in the year. 

Market indexes rallied on Thursday after initial jobless claims last week dropped to the lowest level since May, confirming that labor market conditions are moderating and the Federal Reserve is more likely to engineer a soft landing, averting a recession. 

Jumbo-sized rate cuts are positive for consumers and businesses as they increase demand for goods and services, but lower rates also stoke inflationary forces. 

After a week of tumultuous trading, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite are set to close to advance in the week between 1% and 2%. 

 

U.S. Indexes and Treasury Yields

The S&P 500 index decreased 0.2% to 5,703.66, the Nasdaq Composite fell 0.01% to 18,013.92, and the Russell 2000 index advanced 2.1% to 2,252.70. 

The yield on 2-year Treasury notes edged lower to 3.62%, 10-year Treasury notes inched down to 3.73%, and 30-year Treasury bonds inched lower to 4.06%.

WTI crude oil decreased $0.46 to $70.68 a barrel, and natural gas prices edged up 2 cents to $2.37 a thermal unit.

Gold rose by $29.19 to $2,816.98 an ounce, and silver increased by $0.16 to $31.37.

The dollar index, which weighs the US currency against a basket of foreign currencies, edged higher to 100.75.

 

U.S. Stock Movers

FedEx decreased 13% to $261.50, and the parcel delivery company reported a sharp fall in earnings and the company lowered its annual outlook. 

Nike increased 8.3% to $87.68, and the athletic footwear maker said chief executive John Donahoe would step down from the office on October 13. 

Elliott Hill, a Nike veteran, would return to the company to assume the leading role. 

MillerKnoll declined 7.9% to $25.30, and the office furniture maker reported weaker-than-expected revenue and earnings in its latest quarter. 

Revenue in the fiscal first quarter ending in August decreased 6.1% to $851.5 million from $917.7 million, net income swung to a loss of $0.5 million from $16.1 million, and diluted earnings per share were a loss of 1.2 cents compared to a profit of 16.1 cents a year earlier. 

Chewy declined 2.9% to $25.30 after the online pet products store disclosed its plans to raise $500 million through a public offering of Class A stock.