Major U.S. indexes have rebounded sharply from recent lows as investors regain confidence, largely brushing aside earlier worries about stretched valuations and focusing instead on the rising likelihood of further Federal Reserve rate cuts in December, which futures-based tools currently place near 87%. Dovish remarks from top Fed officials have reinforced expectations for easier policy, helping sustain the advance despite earlier jitters that the central bank might leave rates unchanged at its next meeting.
Even so, the latest session's gains came on relatively light volume, with activity muted by post‑holiday absences, an early market close, and a temporary trading outage at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange that sidelined some participants in the absence of major new U.S. data. This combination of improving rate optimism and thinner participation suggests the rally has solid fundamental support but may not yet reflect the conviction that typically accompanies a full‑throated risk-on move.
Computer hardware stocks turned in some of the market's best performances, with the NYSE Arca Computer Hardware Index surging by 2.5%. SanDisk (SNDK) spiked by 3.8% as the storage company joined the S&P 500 before the start of the day's trading. Gold prices raised sharply contributing to significant strength among gold stocks, as reflected by the 2.1% jump by the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index. Semiconductor, energy and software stocks saw notable strength on the day while some weakness was visible among pharmaceutical stocks.
Asia-Pacific stocks turned in a mixed performance. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index and China's Shanghai Composite Index rose by 0.2% and 0.3% while South Korea's Kospi slumped by 1.5%. The major European markets all moved to the upside on the day. The German DAX Index, the French CAC 40 Index and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index all rose by 0.3%.
In the bond market, treasuries have moved lower after ending the previous session roughly flat. As a result, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note which moves opposite of its price, is up by 2.3 bps at 4.02%.
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