S&P 500 hits new peak, on track for first record close since July

The S&P 500 hit an all-time intraday high on Tuesday and was on track for a record close, lifted by investor confidence that the Federal Reserve is ready to start cutting interest rates, ending a deep sell-off that lasted until late July. will erase. And in early August.

The S&P 500 was last up 0.64% at 5,669.06. The index’s previous record high close was 5,667.2 points on July 16.

Encouraging economic data and expectations of steep interest rate cuts have largely helped the S&P 500 recover as fears of an imminent recession sent the benchmark index down more than 8.5% in the three weeks through August.