Stocks Finish Friday Higher, Eke Out Weekly Gains
The three major averages rose on Friday, propelling them into the green for the week. The Dow added 0.8% in the session, finishing the week up just about 0.1%. The Nasdaq Composite also rose 0.1% in the week, boosted by a 1.2% rally on Friday. The S&P 500 added 0.9% in the session to finish the week up 0.2%.
The next week will bring closely watched inflation data and minutes from the Federal Reserve’s September policy meeting. A handful of major corporate earnings reports are also due. BlackRock’s Rick Rieder believes the Federal Reserve will move forward with small rate cuts in light of Friday’s stellar jobs report, as the Fed Funds rate still looks “abnormally high” even with the first rate cut in the books.
The bond market remains ahead of the Fed after Friday’s jobs report, leaving the forward path of rates in question. However, the data can bolster Wall Street’s bulls, with one wealth manager stating, “I’m more bullish today than I was yesterday.” Meanwhile, Bitcoin investors are grappling with a demand dearth that has pushed the cryptocurrency into bear market territory at times, but analysts are still confident it can reach new records by the end of the year.
