Stock Traders Put Fed Aside in Quarter-End Battle: Markets Wrap
- Powell signals openness to two straight hikes, if necessary
- Big banks ace Fed stress test, clearing the way for payouts
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Wall Street traders took Jerome Powell’s hawkish signals in stride, with bond yields down and stocks fluctuating in one of the last few days of a quarter that saw a blistering artificial-intelligence rally.
The tug of war within the S&P 500’s most-influential group dictated trading Wednesday, with a slide in chipmakers offsetting an advance in tech megacaps like Apple Inc. and Microsoft Corp. After the closing bell, Bank of America Corp. and Wells Fargo & Co. led gains in financial companies as the biggest lenders passed the Federal Reserve’s annual stress test, clearing the way for payouts. Micron Technology Inc. jumped on an upbeat forecast.