Market News

Wall Street ended the third quarter on a strong note as investors seemed much more confident in the Federal Reserve’s ability to achieve a soft landing for the U.S. economy. All three major indexes ended September — historically the weakest month for the stock market — in the green.

How Did the Benchmarks Perform?

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) rose 0.04% or 17.15 points to close at 42,330.15. Sixteen components of the 30-stock index ended in positive territory, while 14 ended in negative.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite advanced 69.58 points or 0.4% to 18,189.17. The major gainer of the Nasdaq Composite was Intuitive Surgical, Inc. ISRG after jumping 2.5%.Intuitive Surgical currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

The S&P 500 gained 0.4%, or 24.31 points, to end at 5,762.48. Eight broad sectors of the benchmark index closed in the green, while three ended in the red. The Real Estate Select Sector SPDR (XLRE), the Health Care Select Sector SPDR (XLV), and the Energy Select Sector SPDR (XLE) rose 0.9%, 0.7% and 0.7%, respectively. In comparison, the Materials Select Sector SPDR (XLB) lost 0.6%.

The fear-gauge CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) decreased 1.4% to 16.73. A total of 12.64 billion shares were traded on Monday, higher than the last 20-session average of 11.93 billion. The S&P 500 posted 30 new 52-week highs and two new lows; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 82 new highs and 88 new lows.

Powell Signals Gradual Rate Cuts as Jobs Data Looms

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell stated on Monday during a conference in Nashville that any future reduction in interest rates will be done gradually to ensure that economic stability is maintained effectively and smoothly. Powell said, "We're looking at it as a process that will play out over some time." Referring to the Fed's interest rate reductions in a question-and-answer session Powell added that it is "not something that we need to go fast on. It'll depend on the data, the speed at which we actually go".

This week several important economic data releases are scheduled that will provide insights into the labor market. On Tuesday, job openings data will be published, followed by the ADP employment report on Wednesday and initial jobless claims on Thursday. Wall Street analysts forecast that approximately 145,000 new jobs were added in September, with the unemployment rate expected to remain steady at 4.2%. These reports are crucial for grasping the current job market situation and could impact decisions regarding interest rates by the Federal Reserve.

Monthly Roundup

For the month, all three benchmark indexes posted gains. The Dow rose 1.9%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq gained 2.7%. The S&P 500 increased by 2%, marking its first positive September since 2019.

Quarterly Roundup

In the third quarter, the S&P 500 increased by 5.5%, the Nasdaq rose 2.6%, and the Dow climbed 8.2%.

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