The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 26,860.20 on Wednesday with a gain of 76.71 points or 0.29%. The S&P 500 closed at 2,993.07 for a gain of 13.44 points or 0.45%. The Nasdaq Composite closed at 8,202.53 for a gain of 60.80 points or 0.75%. The VIX Volatility Index was lower at 13.05 for a loss of 1.04 points or -7.38%).
Wednesday’s market movers
U.S. stocks peaked at record levels Wednesday and closed with gains after dovish Federal Reserve reports supported sentiment for a federal funds rate cut. Fed Chairman Jerome Powell gave the first part of his semi-annual Monetary Policy Report to Congress, which bolstered stocks after the chairman’s dovish remarks that reported a lack of economic growth signals. The Fed’s Federal Open Market Committee Minutes were also released, discussing the concerns over growth that could prompt a policy rate cut move. Fed officials have not clearly specified when a rate cut may be needed. The Fed’s June meeting showed nine of 17 officials estimating no rate change in 2019 with the remaining eight officials targeting a fed funds rate of 1.75% to 2.25%. The current fed funds rate is at 2.25% to 2.50%.
Economic reports affecting market trading included the following:
- The MBA Mortgage Applications Index decreased -2.4% and the MBA’s average 30-year mortgage rate decreased to 4.04% from 4.07%.
- Wholesale inventories increased 0.4% in May after an increase of 0.8%.
- The EIA’s Weekly Petroleum Status report showed crude oil inventories down 9.499 million barrels to 1,103.8 million barrels.
- The Treasury held an auction for 10-year notes at a rate of 2.064%.
- The June FOMC Meeting Minutes were released.
In the S&P 500, energy, consumer staples and technology led gains. In the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the following stocks led gains:
- Chevron (CVX, Financial) 1.68%
- Disney (DIS, Financial) 1.56%
- Pfizer (PFE, Financial) 1.49%
- Exxon Mobil (XOM, Financial) 1.38%
Small-cap stocks
In small caps, the Russell 2000 closed at 1,565.37 for a gain of 2.79 points or 0.18%. The S&P 600 closed at 948.75 for a gain of 1.81 points or 0.19%. The Dow Jones Small-Cap Growth Total Stock Market Index closed at 10,069.08 for a gain of 19.67 points or 0.20%.
Other notable indexes
Other notable index closes included the S&P 400 Mid-Cap Index at 1,945.83 for a loss of 1.38 points or -0.071%; the S&P 100 at 1,324.47 for a gain of 7.68 points or 0.58%; the Nasdaq 100 at 7,903.40 for a gain of 76.54 points or 0.98%; the Russell 3000 at 1,759.12 for a gain of 7.12 points or 0.41%; the Russell 1000 at 1,657.61 for a gain of 7.00 points or 0.42%; the Wilshire 5000 at 30,681.10 for a gain of 124.65 points or 0.41%; and the Dow Jones U.S. Select Dividend Index at 717.09 for a gain of 0.87 points or 0.12%.
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