Posted on 02/15/2017 9:17:05 AM PST by mandaladon
NEW YORK (AP) -- Bond yields climbed on Wednesday and U.S. stock indexes continued their march to record highs after more reports showed the economy continues to strengthen. The encouraging data could push the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates sooner rather than later in its gradual move away from the record-low rates of the Great Recession.
KEEPING SCORE: The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 5 points, or 0.2 percent, to 2,343 as of 11:23 a.m. Eastern time. If it holds the gain, it would be the seventh straight for the index and mark its longest winning streak in nearly three-and-a-half years.
The Dow Jones industrial average rose 89 points, or 0.4 percent, to 20,594. The Nasdaq composite rose 17, or 0.3 percent, to 5,780. The market was nearly evenly split between rising and falling stocks.
ENCOURAGING ECONOMIC GAINS: Wednesday's economic reports give the Federal Reserve more encouragement to raise interest rates, and economists said the possibility is increasing that it may happen at the central bank's next meeting in March. Retailers had stronger sales in January than economists expected, and inflation at the consumer level was the highest in years. Consumer prices rose 2.5 percent in January from a year earlier, the highest rate since March 2012.
Fed Chair Janet Yellen said in testimony before a Senate committee on Tuesday that the strengthening job market and a modest move higher in inflation should warrant continued, gradual increases in interest rates. The central bank raised rates in December for just the second time in a decade, after keeping rates at nearly zero to help lift the economy out of the Great Recession. Yellen speaks before a House committee Wednesday.
BOND YIELDS: Treasury yields jumped immediately after the release of the retail sales and inflation reports.
(Excerpt) Read more at yahoo.com ...
Trump’s fault. They said the market would crash if he was elected. Wait, never mind.
The winning continues.
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