Wall Street stocks were mostly higher early Tuesday, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq both hitting record highs ahead of Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell’s congressional testimony.
Powell’s appearance before the Senate Banking Committee comes amid expectations of interest rate cuts in the second half of 2024 that have contributed to a string of recent records.
“There’s not a lot of news out there,” said Sam Stovall of CFRA Research, “so there’s nothing to reverse the upward trend.”
About 10 minutes after the start of trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.2%, to 39,281.58.
The broader S&P 500 index rose 0.2% to 5,584.73, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index added 0.4% to 18,475.66.
Besides Powell’s appearance, this week’s schedule includes key inflation data and a series of earnings reports from JPMorgan Chase & Co. and other major banks, kicking off second-quarter earnings season.
