This Could Be a Great Week for the Stock Market

The week is coming to a close, and the stock market looks like it is going to come out elevated overall with some good numbers, particularly from the S&P 500.

That stock market index saw record levels on Thursday, and it has continued to climb by 0.25% today for the last day of trading for the week. There were a few decent earners over on the SPX index, including Walgreens (WBA), which gained 5.5% and Wynn Resorts (WYNN), which climbed by 5.39% today.

The Nasdaq Composite is barely moving, with an increase of just 0.05% so far today. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.93%, though, and it looks to be ending the week well.

Chevron Corp (CVX) was the top earner over on the Dow Jones, with a 2.48% increase today. Nvidia (NVDA), one of the top earners this year, is down by 2.64% today. Over the last month, Nvidia has been very uneven, losing a lot of ground early on but then making most of it back up.

Why the Stock Market Is Doing Well

Two major factors are keeping the stock market high and will continue to push it forward in the coming weeks. Those are falling inflation and the Fed’s interest rate cuts. These two factors have a widespread economic impact and should help the stock market to remain elevated for much of the remainder of 2024.

Americans are optimistic about the economy too, with Democrats talking about the gains they have made over the past four years with Biden in office and Republicans looking forward to Trump fixing what they see as economic missteps, if he is elected. That optimism may change quickly once the results of the election are in, but until November, many investors will be riding high on campaign promises.

Consumer sentiment is up as well for the month, with the index climbing to 70.1 in September, which is the highest that index has been in five months. Sentiment is below the historical average right now, but that could change in the coming months. For now, it is good enough to not hinder the stock market’s progress.