S&P 500, Nasdaq hit record highs at start of US Fed meeting week
This week, the Fed’s rate decision will take centre stage, with investors largely expecting a 25-basis-point cut on Wednesday
The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq hit intraday record highs on Monday, beginning the week with the Federal Reserve’s policy meeting on a strong note, while Tesla shares gained following CEO Elon Musk’s stock purchase.
The electric vehicle maker jumped 5.8 per cent to its highest since late January after regulatory filings revealed Musk had acquired nearly US$1 billion worth of Tesla’s stock on Friday.
This week, the Fed’s rate decision will take centre stage, with investors largely expecting a 25-basis-point cut on Wednesday following a series of economic indicators that pointed to a deteriorating jobs market.
Traders are pricing in a total of 68.9 points in monetary policy easing by the end of 2025, data compiled by LSEG showed.
“Everyone is anticipating at least one (25 bps) cut, some people are thinking 50 bps. That’s overreaching, but the market is certainly built for one,” said Joe Saluzzi, co-head of equity trading at Themis Trading.
“Anything less than that (25 bps) would be a severe disappointment and we’d have a very, very sharp sell-off.”