US stocks rose to record levels Wednesday, as investors awaited comments from Fed Chair Jerome Powell.
The yields on bonds fell slightly with the 10-year US Treasury yield slightly lower at 1.294%.
Bitcoin and gold fell.
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US stocks rose to near new records Wednesday, as investors awaited the key speech of Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell at the Jackson Hole conference for central bankers later in this week.
The benchmark S&P 500, with its 50th record closing of 2021 on Tuesday (February 21st), edged higher. The tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 as well as the Dow Jones Industrial Average both climbed.
Here are the US indexes at 9:30 AM. ET opens Wednesday.
For any indications of when Powell's speech will end, all eyes will be on Powell's speech.
However, some, such as economist Mohamed El-Erian think that the event will provide little direction.
Lauren Goodwin, an economist and portfolio strategist at New York Life Investments believes that the Fed will continue to slow down and steadily taper asset purchases.
She stated in a Wednesday note that if there are two more strong job reports - four strong reports make an assumption - tapering may start in November or December, slightly sooner than our previous base case January. Market participants are well-prepared."
Despite the rapid spread of the Delta variant, stocks have reached new heights. Major indexes closed Tuesday at record highs following Tuesday's full approval of the COVID-19 vaccine.
The yields on US bonds fell slightly on Wednesday with the 10-year Treasury yield slightly lower at 1.294%. Prices are inversely related to yields.
After a devastating fire at an offshore Mexican oil rig, oil prices rose.
West Texas Intermediate crude oil rose 0.7% to $68.02 a barrel. Brent crude oil, the international benchmark for oil, rose 0.89% to $71.68 a barrel.
The price of gold fell 0.33% to $1.796.19 an ounce.
After briefly surpassing the $50,000 level, Bitcoin fell to $47.853.70.
