Experts See Rate Cut Soon, Dow Takes Flight

Stocks were relatively unchanged on Friday after Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller said inflation was tame enough that the central bank could cut rates at its next meeting, a more optimistic view than Chair Jerome Powell gave on Wednesday.

The 30-stock index regained 81.4 points to start Friday at 42,253.06.

The S&P 500 index notched 0.79 points to 5,981.66.

The NASDAQ Composite dipped 27.49 points, to 19,518.78.

For the week, the S&P 500 has traded up with a gain of 0.4%. The 30-stock Dow has risen by 0.3%, while the NASDAQ has jumped about 1%.

CarMax shares surged $3.22 or 5% early Friday, to $67.55, after its first-quarter results topped Wall Street’s expectations.
Markets were closed Thursday for the “Juneteenth” holiday.

Stocks were relatively unchanged on Friday after Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller said inflation was tame enough that the central bank could cut rates at its next meeting, a more optimistic view than Chair Jerome Powell gave on Wednesday.

Fed Chair Jerome Powell said Wednesday the central bank was in no hurry to cut benchmark rates and will remain data dependent, especially as it remains unclear how Trump’s tariffs will impact the economy. Stocks closed slightly lower that day following those remarks.

Trump ripped into Powell again Thursday, saying the Fed Chair is costing the U.S. “hundreds of billions of dollars” by delaying rate cuts.

Investor fears around the conflict between Israel and Iran, which has yet to cool, were tamed after Trump said Thursday that he would decide whether to strike Iran within the next two weeks but wanted to allow for “a substantial chance of negotiations.”

Prices for the 10-year Treasury were lower, lifting yields to 4.42% from Wednesday’s 4.39%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.

Oil prices dropped 15 cents to $74.99 U.S. a barrel.

Gold prices slid $25.40 to $3,384.50 U.S. an ounce.