US stocks edge higher; rally struggles for momentum
Investing.com — U.S. stocks traded marginally higher Tuesday, struggling to continue the recent rally as Federal Reserve policymakers attempted to rein in investors’ hopes for potential future interest rate cuts.
By 09:35 ET (14:35 GMT), the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 65 points, or 0.2%, S&P 500 traded 10 points, or 0.2%, higher and NASDAQ Composite climbed 50 points, or 0.3%.
Equities have been on the tear after the Federal Reserve indicated it was done raising interest rates and will likely pivot to cuts next year, signaling the likelihood of three cuts of 25 basis points during 2024.
However, gains have been more limited of late as Fed policymakers have attempted to dilute the enthusiasm generated by the dovish nature of the Fed last meeting.
Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester pushed back against the notion that borrowing costs will soon be lowered, telling the Financial Times that markets are «a little bit ahead» in their projections for a reduction as early as March.
She added that traders jumped too quickly to the «end part» that the Fed is «going to normalize quickly,» the FT reported.
This followed similar comments from Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee on Monday and New York Fed President John Williams late last week.
Goolsbee returns to the public stage later Tuesday, along with Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic.
A light week for economic data and earnings continues Tuesday, with investors only able to digest preliminary building permits data for November and housing starts.
In corporate news, FedEx (NYSE:FDX) is due to report its November quarter results after the closing bell.
Elsewhere, Alphabet's (NASDAQ:GOOGL) Google has agreed to pay $700 million to settle a lawsuit brought against
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