Wall Street Aims to Extend Winning Streak Ahead of Fed Chair Powell’s Speech

 

Wall Street inched higher early Tuesday as markets sought to extend their recent winning streak. Investors are closely watching Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s highly-anticipated speech later this week. Here are the key points:

1. Market Movement:

   • Futures for the S&P 500 were up 0.1%, while futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average remained relatively unchanged.
   • Hawaiian Holdings saw an 11.3% jump in premarket trading after its merger with Alaska Air cleared a major regulatory hurdle.
   • Lowe’s, however, experienced a modest decline after beating profit expectations but missing sales targets.

2. Fed Chair Powell’s Speech:

   • The setting for Powell’s speech in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, has historically been home to significant policy announcements by the Fed.
   • Expectations are not overly high this time, as most anticipate the Fed will begin cutting interest rates next month—the first such cut since early 2022.
   • The big question is whether the economy needs the Federal Reserve to remove the brakes or apply deeper cuts for acceleration.

3. Bond Market:

   • The yield on the 10-year Treasury held steady at 3.87%, while the 2-year ticked back to 4.05%.

4. Global Markets:

   • Global markets mostly rose after Wall Street’s roller coaster summer, with the S&P 500 nearing its all-time high.