Dow & S&P 500 end the week on a high

On September 22, the Federal Reserve signalled it was ready to start reversing its pandemic stimulus, starting November, and could raise interest rates next year amid risks of a lengthier-than-anticipated jump in inflation.

In its post-meeting statement, the Fed’s rate-setting committee indicated that it could begin to taper its $120 billion in monthly asset purchases as soon as its next meeting, which is scheduled for November 2.

Major U.S. indexes soared to intraday highs following the central bank’s statement, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average adding as much as 520.58 points at its peak.

However, Wall Street’s modest decline since the early part of the month threatens to derail the S&P 500’s incredible run of seven positive months in a row.

For the week, the three bellwethers ended the week with synchronised, albeit minor gains. Dow moved up 0.62% – up after three consecutive weeks of downs. The S&P 500 gained 0.51% this week, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq ascended by a very minimal 0.02%.