S&P 500 Reclaims All-Time Highs As Powell Hints At Rate Cuts, Nvidia Breaks $900, Bitcoin Nears Record Levels: What’s Driving Market Thursday?

This surge was propelled by reassuring comments from Fed Chair Jerome Powell regarding potential interest rate declines.

Addressing the Senate Banking Committee, Powell indicated that the Fed is not too far from being confident enough to cut rates suggesting a growing inclination among policymakers to initiate easing policy this year.

Powell’s statements injected fresh optimism into the markets, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 climbing to 18,290, nearing its previous record of 18,333 points achieved just days prior.

The Magnificent Seven, monitored through the Roundhill Magnificent Seven ETF (NASDAQ:MAGS), rallied by 2%, led by standout performances from Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META), which surged by 4%, and Nvidia Corp. (NASDAQ:NVDA), climbing by 3.5% and surpassing the $900 per share milestone.

Meanwhile, Treasury yields experienced a slight decline, while the dollar weakened by 0.4%, heading towards its lowest closing level since mid-January.

In Europe, the European Central Bank (ECB) opted to maintain interest rates at their current levels. However, ECB President Christine Lagarde struck a cautious tone during the press conference, emphasizing that discussions on rate cuts had not taken place during the meeting. Lagarde also underscored the independence of Frankfurt’s decision-making process from that of the Fed and highlighted the need for increased confidence before considering any policy adjustments.

Gold continued its upward trajectory, notching new record highs, now surpassing $2,155 per ounce and marking its eighth consecutive session of gains.