On Friday, August 23rd, U.S. stocks closed higher after Fed Chair Jerome Powell hinted at a likely rate cut in September, citing reduced inflation risks.

The S&P 500, Dow Jones Industrial Average, and Nasdaq Composite all posted gains, driven by strong performances from major players like Nvidia, Apple, and Tesla. Financial stocks hit an all-time high, signaling market confidence. All three major indexes closed the week with solid advances.

According to economic data, Baker Hughes reported that the total number of active U.S. oil rigs remained steady at 483 this week.

During his Jackson Hole speech, Fed Chair Jerome Powell hinted at an imminent interest rate adjustment, emphasizing that future decisions will be data-driven without committing to specific timing or scale.

All 11 major sectors of the S&P 500 finished the session in positive territory, with real estate stocks leading the gains.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 1.14% and closed at 41,175.08. The S&P 500 ended the day higher by 1.15% at 5,634.61, and the Nasdaq Composite rose 1.47%, finishing the session at 17,877.79.

Asian Markets Today

• On Monday, Japan’s Nikkei 225 closed lower by 0.94% at 38,058.00, led by losses in the Transportation Equipment, Services, and Electrical/Machinery sectors.
• Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 gained 0.76%, ending the day at 8,084.50, led by gains in the Telecoms Services, Financials, and Energy sectors.     
• India’s Nifty 50 gained 0.76%, closing at 25,010.60, and the Nifty 500 closed higher by 0.61% at 23,561.75.
• China’s Shanghai Composite was up 0.04%, ending the session at 2,855.52, and the Shenzhen CSI declined 0.09%, closing at 3,324.22.
• Hong Kong’s Hang Seng ended the session higher by 1.06% at 17,798.73.

Eurozone at 06:15 AM ET

• The European STOXX 50 index declined 0.08%.
• Germany’s DAX fell 0.22%.
• France’s CAC was up 0.15%.
• U.K. Markets are closed for the Bank holiday.

Commodities at 06:15 AM ET

• Crude Oil WTI was trading higher by 1.86% at $76.27/bbl, and Brent was up 1.69% at $79.50 bbl.
• Oil prices rose due to escalating Gaza conflict fears potentially disrupting regional oil supplies, extending gains from Friday driven by optimism over U.S. interest rate cuts boosting global economic and fuel demand outlook.
• Natural Gas fell 1.01% to $2.158.
• Gold was trading higher by 0.63% at $2,562.50, Silver gained 1.31% to $30.6555, and Copper rose 0.69% to $4.2745.

US Futures at 06:15 AM ET

Dow futures were up 0.07%, S&P 500 futures gained 0.18%, and Nasdaq 100 Futures rose 0.23%.

Forex at 06:15 AM ET

• The U.S. dollar index gained 0.05% to 100.77, the USD/JPY was down 0.24% to 144.01, and the USD/AUD rose 0.22% to 1.4763.
• The U.S. dollar weakened, hitting a three-week low against the yen, as Fed Chair Powell’s dovish shift contrasted with Bank of Japan Governor Ueda’s hawkish stance. The dollar also hovered near multi-month lows against the euro and sterling, reflecting differing central bank policies and expectations of rate cuts in the U.S.

Photo by Sharon McCutcheon on Unsplash