Wall Street climbs as Fed’s signals at Jackson Hole awaited

The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq surged on Thursday on support from growth and semiconductor stocks, while investors eyed the Federal Reserve’s Jackson Hole conference for clues on its policy outlook.

Fed Chair Jerome Powell is due to give a speech on Friday that will be scrutinized for any indication that an economic slowdown might alter the central bank’s strategy.

The Fed is going to remain pretty resolute and vigilant in their campaign to combat and break the back of inflation. The market has sort of wishful thinking around Fed coming to rescue for any market difficulty right now.


Traders are now seeing a slightly greater likelihood of a third 75-basis-point interest hike from the Fed at its policy meeting next month, compared with a 50-basis-point increase.


Most high-growth and technology stocks advanced in mid-day trading, with Amazon.com Inc AMZN.O and Alphabet Inc GOOGL.O adding more than 1% each, as Treasury yields dipped after four straight sessions of gains. But electric-vehicle maker Tesla Inc TSLA.O slid 1.0% after its 3-for-1 stock split came into effect.