US markets end higher after Powell signals smaller rate hikes

01 Dec 2022 Evaluate

The US markets ended sharply higher on Wednesday as remarks by Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell provided further evidence the central bank plans to slow its aggressive pace of interest rate hikes as soon as next month. Powell noted that the full effects of the Fed's rapid rate increases have yet to be felt. However, the Fed chief argued the timing of a slowdown in the pace of rate hikes is less significant than how much further the central bank will need to raise rates and how long it will be necessary to hold policy at a restrictive level. While the central bank seems likely to slow the pace of rate hikes, Powell suggested rates would likely need to be somewhat higher than predicted by Fed officials following the September meeting. At that time, Fed officials forecast interest rates would peak at 4.6 percent in 2023 before being scaled back to 3.9 percent in 2024.

On the sectoral front, semiconductor stocks moved sharply higher over the course of the session, resulting in a 5.9 percent spike by the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index. The surge lifted the index to a three-month closing high. Substantial strength also emerged among networking stocks, with the NYSE Arca Networking Index soaring by 3.7 percent to its best closing level in almost a month. On the economic data front, pending home sales in the U.S. decreased for the fifth consecutive month in October, according to a report released by the National Association of Realtors (NAR). NAR said its pending home sales index tumbled by 4.6 percent to 77.1 in October after plunging by 8.7 percent to a revised reading of 80.8 in September. Street had expected pending home sales to slump by 5.2 percent compared to the 10.2 percent nosedive originally reported for the previous month.

Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 737.24 points or 2.18 percent to 34,589.77, Nasdaq surged 484.22 points or 4.41 percent to 11,468 and S&P 500 was up by 122.48 points 3.09 percent to 4,080.11.


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