Yahoo Finance Stock market today: Stocks close at records as Powell strikes dovish tone and Tesla shares spike
Stocks rose Tuesday, with the S&P 500 closing at an all-time high above 5,500.
Dovish comments from Fed Chairman Jerome Powell helped propel stocks higher.
Meanwhile, Tesla jumped 10% after beating estimates for second-quarter deliveries.
US stocks jumped Tuesday on encouraging remarks from Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell, which sent the S&P 500 to an all-time high.
The benchmark index closed above 5,500 for the first time. Bond yields dropped. The 10-year Treasury yield tumbled four basis points to 4.432%.
"We've made quite a bit of progress in bringing inflation back down to our target," Powell acknowledged at a central bank forum in Portugal.
However, he reiterated that more confidence is needed that inflation will return to the Fed's 2% goal.
The dovish commentary came alongside softening job openings data. According to Tuesday's JOLTS report, there were 8.14 million job openings in May, while the openings-to-unemployed ratio matched pre-pandemic metrics.
"Overall, job openings in higher paying roles are moderating as the labor market has early signs of cooling," LPL Financial chief economist Jeffrey Roach said. " As long as the job market is stable, the soft landing narrative appears likely as consumers will have some capacity to spend."
Investors have been eager to see a moderate softening of jobs data, as it would allow the Fed more wiggle room to cut interest rates.
Despite Powell's commentary, policy expectations were little changes among futures markets: investors are pricing in rate cuts to start in November.
Tesla boosted the S&P 500's rally in the session as the electric vehicle maker posted better-than-expected deliveries for the second-quarter. The stock spiked 10% on Tuesday.
The company reported 442,956 vehicle deliveries in the second quarter, an annual slump of 4.8% but higher than the 439,000 expected by analysts.
Nvidia meanwhile fell 1.3% extending a rough patch for the stock that started last month, shortly after its dizzying rise to briefly capture the title of the world's most valuable company.
Here's where US indexes stood at the 4:00 p.m. closing bell on Tuesday:
S&P 500: 5,509.01, up 0.62%
Dow Jones Industrial Average: 39,331.85, up 0.41% (+162.33 points)
Nasdaq composite: 18,028.76, up 0.84%
Here's what else is going on today:
Russia is shuttering a mortgage program that triggered a property boom, amid fears of an overheating economy.
Why housing will stay unaffordable even if the Fed cuts rates.
The bond market is signaling a higher likelihood of a second Trump presidency, market veteran Ed Yardeni says.
In commodities, bonds, and crypto:
West Texas Intermediate crude oil slid 0.5% to $82.96 a barrel. Brent crude, the international benchmark, inched 0.24% lower to $86.39 a barrel.
Gold stayed essentially flat at $2,330.49 per ounce.
The 10-year Treasury yield fell four basis points to 4.432%.
Bitcoin fell about 2% to $61,884.
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