US stocks stepped higher on Thursday, eyeing a return to the Trump rally as investors mapped out the next president’s likely impact on markets and awaited the Federal Reserve’s policy decision.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) hovered near the flatline, on the heels of a 1,500-point gain that marked the blue-chip gauge’s best day since 2022. The S&P 500 (^GSPC) rose roughly 0.4%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) moved up 0.9% as shares of chip heavyweight Nvidia (NVDA) rose to new highs.
Spirits still appear buoyant after Donald Trump’s presidential election win, which sent all three major stock gauges soaring to fresh record highs on Wednesday. His plans for corporate tax cuts and deregulation have fueled optimism for a boost to the economy that will feed into stocks.
But some on Wall Street see signs of a relief rally, given Trump’s decisive victory also put paid to worries about a contested vote. They suggest stock gains could slow as the euphoria fades.
The Fed’s interest-rate decision later Thursday — typically, a dominant event for markets — is taking something of a back seat amid the election fallout.
For one thing, investors see a 25 basis point rate cut as pretty much a sure thing at the end of policymakers’ two-day meeting. Instead, the focus is on what Chair Jerome Powell might reveal about the future path of policy, especially as Trump’s return could mean rates stay higher for longer.
On the corporate front, Arm Holdings (ARM) stock fell as the chip designer’s revenue forecast disappointed Wall Street hopes for stronger, AI-powered growth. By contrast, peer Qualcomm’s (QCOM) shares jumped more than 4% after its sales and profit outlooks topped estimates.
Meanwhile, Trump Media & Technology Group stock (DJT) continued to pull back from the big spike that followed the election result. Shares in the company — the home of Trump’s social media platform, Truth Social — fell by double digits in early trading.
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