Market Rally Led by Chipmakers and Banks Amid Fed Rate Cut Signals
U.S. equities surged Wednesday as semiconductor stocks and financial giants outperformed following strong earnings and dovish Fed expectations. Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) led chipmakers higher after securing a key Oracle deal, while Morgan Stanley (MS) and Bank of America (BAC) rode investment banking strength to beat estimates.
The semiconductor sector gained momentum as ASML reported robust AI-driven demand, reinforcing the tech rally. Commodity trader Bunge Global (BG) emerged as the S&P 500's top performer amid U.S.-China soybean trade tensions.
Insurance firm Progressive (PGR) bucked the trend, sliding on cost pressures that eroded its combined ratio. The market's risk-on tone reflects growing confidence in monetary policy easing, though cryptocurrency markets remained conspicuously absent from the day's narrative despite their traditional sensitivity to liquidity expectations.
