Stocks Surge, Gold Hits New All-Time High, Bitcoin Reclaims $67,000 As Powell Reassures Wall Street: What's Driving Markets Wednesday?

Markets rallied across the board on Wednesday, erasing the uptick in volatility seen in the previous session, following reassurances from Fed Chair Jerome Powell regarding the Fed’s willingness to ease monetary policy in 2024 if inflation consistently moves toward the 2% target.

On Wall Street, all indices saw gains in midday trading, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 leading the way, up by 1.2%, outperforming both the S&P 500, which rose by 0.8%, and the Dow Jones, which saw a 0.6% increase. Each of the eleven sectors comprising the S&P 500 reported gains, indicating a widespread rally in the stock market.

Small-cap stocks also saw notable gains, with the iShares Russell 2000 ETF IWM up by 1%, poised to recover losses from Tuesday.

Among the standout performers within the Magnificent Seven, Nvidia Corp. NVDA once again led the pack, up by over 3%, fueled by a broader surge in the semiconductor industry.

Moreover, the bullish sentiment spilled over into other asset classes, with bonds, commodities, and cryptocurrencies all benefiting from the decline in the greenback and Treasury yields.

Gold, represented by the SPDR Gold Trust GLD, surged by 0.8%, surpassing the $2,150/oz mark and marking new all-time highs. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude rose by 2.4% to $80 per barrel, reaching the highest level in four months, following EIA data revealing a lower-than-expected surge in weekly inventories.

Bitcoin BTC/USD reclaimed $67,000, bouncing back following a drop to $60,000 on Tuesday shortly after reaching record highs.

Wednesday’s Performance In US Major Indices, ETFs

Major Indices	Price	%
Nasdaq 100	18,103.90	1.2%
Russell 2000	2,073.72	1.0%
S&P 500	5,121.78	0.8%
Dow Jones	38,776.17	0.5%

The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust SPY rose 0.8% to $511.45, the SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average DIA surged 0.5% to $388.19 and the tech-heavy Invesco QQQ Trust QQQ rallied 1.2% to $441.15, according to Benzinga Pro data. 

The Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund XLE, was the top performer, up by 1.4%, while the Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR Fund XLY slightly lagged behind, up by 0.2%. 

Wednesday’s Stock Movers

• CrowdStrike Holding Inc. CRWD rose over 13% after the company reported better-than-expected results last quarter.
• Palantir Technologies Inc. PLTR rallied nearly 12% after winning a prime contract worth $178.4 million from the U.S. Army for developing and delivering the Tactical Intelligence Targeting Access Node (TITAN) ground station system
• New York Community Bancorp NYCB plummeted by 42% after news surfaced that the troubled regional bank is pursuing equity capital raising.
• Despite surpassing earnings forecasts, Nordstrom Inc. JWN experienced a decline of over 15% as it disclosed weaker-than-anticipated guidance for 2024. In a similar fashion, Foot Locker Inc. FL fell 30%.
• Other companies reacting to earnings are Ross Stores, Inc. ROST, down about 1%, Campbell Soup Company CPB, down by 0.3%, United Natural Foods, Inc. UNFI, down 15%, Abercrombie & Fitch Co. ANF, down 6%.
• DexCom Inc. DXCM rose 9% after the FDA approved Stelo Glucose Biosensor System as the first over-the-counter (OTC) continuous glucose monitor (CGM). 
• Entravision Communications Corporation EVC tumbled by over 50% after the company received communication from Meta Platforms Inc META that it intends to wind down its authorized sales partner (ASPs) program.
• Victoria’s Secret & Co. VSCO is due to report after the close.

Now Read: Powell Stresses Need For ‘More Data’ Before Considering Rate Cuts, Downplays Recession, Commercial Real Estate Risks

Image created using artificial intelligence with Midjourney.