Wall Street Pushes Higher as Rate-Cut Bets Gain Steam
Stocks extended their winning streak on Wednesday, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq climbing to two-week highs as traders grew more confident the Fed will cut rates next month.
The move had broad support. Ten of eleven S&P 500 sectors finished in the green, led by tech and energy, while mega-caps did the heavy lifting. The lone laggard: communication services, dragged down by weakness in Alphabet.
Fresh labor data gave bulls something to work with. Jobless claims came in at 216,000 — lighter than expected — while core capital goods orders topped forecasts. The read: the economy’s holding up, but not so hot that it boxes the Fed in.
“The economy isn’t slipping into recession, but it’s weak enough to allow the Fed another cut,” said Kim Forrest at Bokeh Capital Partners. That sentiment showed up in the futures market, where odds of a December rate cut jumped to nearly 85% — almost double where they stood a week ago.
Buyers in Control — For Now
Breadth told the story. Advancers topped decliners by more than 2-to-1 on the NYSE, and the Nasdaq posted 60 new highs against just 23 new lows. Traders aren’t chasing, but they’re not fading the rally either.
All three indexes are holding comfortably above their 50-day moving averages — a technical floor that’s kept the bid intact. The Dow, last at 47,530.24, is sitting above its 50-day at 46,723.65. The Nasdaq at 23,256.95 is clear of 22,925.59. And the S&P 500 at 6,827.49 has a cushion above 6,720.93. That alignment keeps the short-term tone constructive and a run at record highs on the table.
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See all S&P 500 forecastsWinners and Losers: AI Names Shine, Workday Takes a Hit
Dell jumped nearly 7% after guidance beat expectations, fueled by surging demand for AI servers — a reminder that the AI trade still has legs in the right pockets.
Robinhood led the S&P gainers, up over 8%. AppLovin added close to 5%, and Oracle climbed 4% as software names caught a bid. The discount retailers had a quiet bounce too: Dollar Tree and Dollar General both rose around 4%, a sign traders may be positioning ahead of holiday results.
On the losing side, Workday cratered nearly 10% — the session’s biggest S&P decliner — after disappointing guidance. Deere dropped over 5% on agricultural demand concerns. And HP slid on weak forecasts and layoff plans, a reminder that not every corner of tech is riding the AI wave.
What’s Next
The Beige Book landed later in the session, giving the Fed another look at regional conditions. But with Thanksgiving looming, volumes will thin — and that can cut both ways. Holiday shopping kicks off in earnest, and how consumers show up will matter for sentiment heading into December.
For now, the path of least resistance is higher. Rate-cut hopes are doing the work, and buyers keep stepping in on dips. Whether that holds depends on what the data says next — but the market wants to believe.
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