Wall Street ends higher on rate cuts, S&P 500, Nasdaq miss record highs

Wall Street ends higher on rate cuts, S&P 500, Nasdaq miss record highs

By Stephen Culp

Thu June 26, 2025 6:36 PM  

All the indexes trended straight up today with some more impressive 3-digit gains given the combo of the tenuous Israel-Iran truce continuing to hold and a variety of downgraded economic factors that gave rise to hopes of rate cuts sooner than later. Among such factors was a revised GDP showing more contraction than before, weaker consumer spending and jobless claims reaching multi-year highs suggesting cracks in the labor market. Stimulus also came by way of the Fed proposing to relax its leverage rules, which would make it easier for the banks to make riskier loans.  

This made the bank index advance 1.6%. It also helped a lot that more than one Fed official stated today that the current economic data would suggest that further easing is appropriate. This has now raised the odds of rate hikes this year from two to three. Today was yet another example that even the hint of good news is enough to send this very jittery market way up. Volume at 16.2 billion was below the average of 18.1 billion. 

DJ: 42,982.43  -106.59      NAS: 19,973.55  +61.02       S&P: 6,092.16  -0.02           6/25

DJ: 43,386.84  +404.41     NAS: 20,167.91  +194.36     S&P: 6,141.02  +48.86         6/26

Thu 6-26-25 4:01 pm Wall Street ends higher, S&P 500, Nasdaq approach record highs on rising rate cut hopes | Reuters