S&P 500 breaks 7,800 barrier as cooling US inflation eases rate hike fears
“The inflation picture at the moment isn’t enough to derail what really remains an earnings-driven market,” Bill Merz, head of capital markets research at US Bank Asset Management, told CNBC.
Merz said the recent moderation in CPI and PPI was constructive for now, but that it remained to be seen how the Fed under its new chair, Kevin Warsh, would interpret the figures.
North of the border, the S&P/TSX composite index rose 97.15 points to 36,759.29, as strength in technology offset weakness elsewhere, BNN Bloomberg reported.
“The TSX tech stocks are also very strong today broadly but the rest of the market, not so much,” said Brian Madden, chief investment officer at First Avenue Investment Counsel.
Materials led the decliners as gold retreated, with the December contract falling US$47.10 to US$4,420.40 an ounce.
