An encouraging reading on retail sales sent stocks higher to start Thursday. While the rally ran out of steam shortly after lunchtime, a late-afternoon push higher had the main indexes adding to Wednesday's Fed-induced gains.
Yesterday, the Nasdaq Composite, S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average each jumped 1.4%, with the blue-chip Dow closing at a new all-time high. The bullish price action was fueled by the Federal Reserve's forecast for three rate cuts for next year.
