U.S. stocks end higher to close September

NEW YORK, Sept. 30 (Xinhua) — U.S. stocks ended higher on Monday to close September, a rally marked by bullishness surrounding the first interest rate cuts in years and the artificial intelligence boom.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 17.15 points, or 0.04 percent, to 42,330.15. The S&P 500 added 24.31 points, or 0.42 percent, to 5,762.48, which is its best September return since 2019. The Nasdaq Composite Index increased 69.58 points, or 0.38 percent, to 18,189.17.
Nine of the 11 primary S&P 500 sectors ended in green, with energy and communication services leading the gainers by adding 0.83 percent and 0.79 percent, respectively. Meanwhile, materials and consumer discretionary led the laggards by losing 0.60 percent and 0.28 percent, respectively.
The S&P 500 dropped but then recovered losses during the trading session following Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s remarks at a conference in Nashville, Tennessee on Monday. “We’re looking at it as a process that will play out over some time,” Powell said during a Q&A session, addressing the Fed’s approach to interest rate cuts, “not something that we need to go fast on. It’ll depend on the data, the speed at which we actually go.”
Powell stressed that the central bank’s focus is on maintaining a stable and robust economy, as well as a strong job market, rather than intervening to rescue an economy in distress or to avert a potential recession. “If the economy performs as expected, that would mean two more cuts this year,” both by a quarter-point, he added.
Powell’s comments dampened market expectation of another big cut of benchmark interest rate by the Fed.
Traders are currently factoring in a 37.1 percent likelihood that the Fed will lower rates by another 50 basis points in its meeting on Nov. 7 much lower than 62.9 percent in the previous session, according to CME Group’s FedWatch tool. ■