by Sinéad Carew and Bansari Mayur Kamdar

(Reuters) – The New York Stock Exchange ended higher on Thursday, with its three main indexes hitting records, as investors were reassured by announcements from the US Federal Reserve (Fed) and by gains in the semi-manufacturing sector. drivers with Micron Technology’s optimistic forecasts.

The Dow Jones index gained 0.68%, or 269.24 points, to 39,781.37 points.

The broader S&P-500 gained 16.91 points, or 0.32%, to 5,241.53 points.

The Nasdaq Composite advanced 32.43 points (0.20%) to 16,401.84 points.

Gained by a certain tension at the start of the week, before the Fed meeting, investors were reassured Wednesday afternoon by the press release from the American central bank and the comments of its president, Jerome Powell, on the upcoming easing of monetary policy.

Despite recent higher-than-expected inflation data, the Fed once again left interest rates unchanged and confirmed plans to make three 25 basis point cuts this year, marking a post-cycle turnaround of monetary tightening launched in March 2022 in the face of soaring inflation.

Already reached records the day before at the end of the session, the main Wall Street indices once again benefited on Thursday from optimism on rates as well as the boom in the semiconductor sector.

Micron Technology jumped more than 14% to a record closing high after reporting a surprise quarterly profit and providing a better-than-expected revenue forecast for the current quarter.

This benefited the semiconductor sector as a whole, as Broadcom gained 5.6% after TD Cowan upgraded its recommendation to “outperform” and heavyweight Nvidia gained more than 1%. .

“The results maintain semiconductors as market catalysts but, more broadly, risk appetite stems from the Fed’s dovish tone on Wednesday,” commented Matthew Miskin, co-chief strategist at John Hancock Investment Management.

Jerome Powell declared at a press conference on Wednesday, following the Fed’s press release, that the higher-than-expected inflation data had not changed the “narrative” according to which “inflation is gradually falling” towards the 2% objective despite certain “turmoil”.

However, Matthew Miskin questioned a possible excess of optimism from the American central bank about inflation and rate cuts, saying that there remained a “risk” that concerns about inflation would return to the forefront. market “later this year”.

Data published during the day, however, strengthened investor morale. The number of weekly jobless claims in the United States fell unexpectedly, while real estate sales rose last month to a one-year high – signs that the American economy is off to a strong start to the year.

“This economy continues to defy expectations, to the delight of the markets,” noted Matthew Miskin.

Almost all of the eleven main sectors of the S&P-500 ended the session in the green. Manufacturing was the best performing sector, up 1%. Communication services fell 0.2%.

Countering the trend of the day, Apple lost 4.1% after the US Department of Justice announced antitrust proceedings against the iPhone manufacturer for accusations of monopoly in the smartphone market.

For its stock market debut, Reddit saw its title reach $50.44, an amount 38% higher than the price of $34 set for its IPO.

(Written by Jean Terzian)

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