It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas on Wall Street.
The S&P 500 and other major indexes opened higher after gaining more than 1% on Wednesday. Benchmark bond yields also fell to multimonth lows after the Federal Reserve signaled interest-rate cuts in 2024. The Dow is coming off a record close.
The 10-year Treasury yield is back below 4% just weeks after it breached 5%, loosening financial conditions in the economy.
Stocks rose, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite leading gains. Adobe shares came under pressure.
Global stocks surged. Indexes in Australia, Hong Kong and South Korea all added more than 1%. The Stoxx Europe 600 index also rose by more than 1%.
The bond rally continued, pushing down yields on sovereign debt in Europe and Asia Pacific. Central banks in London and Frankfurt followed the Fed in holding rates steady, but showed less enthusiasm about shifting to rate cuts.
The dollar weakened against the yen and a range of other currencies, including the euro and British pound. Norway’s currency surged after an unexpected rate rise.
Commodities rallied, with oil prices advancing roughly 2% and gold gaining by even more.
