The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) completed a successful trading session on Wednesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.09% among the key players, affecting the high close. Hence, the Dow Jones forecast remains positive, as the stock has a new one-month high. The S&P 500 index increased by 1.02%, and the NASDAQ Composite Index rose by 1.18%.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average revealed the best participants of the session, reinforcing the positive Dow Jones forecast today. Home Depot Inc. (NYSE: HD) increased by 2.1%, trading at 344.18 at the close. In the same manner, Travelers Companies Stock (NYSE: TRV) showed a 1.99% increase, up to 207.19 by the end of the session. Lastly, 3M Company (NYSE: MMM) ended the session at 101.67, growing by 1.99%. Remarkably, Visa Inc. Class A (NYSE: V) is now on the worst performers’ list. The stock fell by 0.92%, getting down to 263.00 at closing. As well as the Walt Disney Company (NYSE: DIS), which showed a 0.11% decline, ending at 96.95.

S&P 500’s top performers were Albemarle Corp. (NYSE: ALB), ending the session at 96.90 with a 7.11% rise. Besides, CarMax Inc. (NYSE: KMX) went up 6.46% to 76.93, and Illumina Inc. (NASDAQ: ILMN) rose by 6.08% with a final close at 113.17.

On the worst performers’ side, Uber Technologies Inc (NYSE: UBER) dropped 2.88% to close at 69.27. Deckers Outdoor Corporation (NYSE: DECK) was also down 4.86% to 893.37 in late trade, and Kenvue Inc (NYSE: KVUE) dropped 2.85% to 17.70 at the close.

Nasdaq Record: Gainers and Losers

The top performer was Inspire Veterinary Partners Inc (NASDAQ: IVP), up 110.23% to close at 7.40. The stock rose to a Nasdaq record high today. Besides, Kazia Therapeutics Ltd ADR (NASDAQ: KZIA), up 248.02% to end at 0.67. Lastly, Fresh2 Group Ltd DRC (NASDAQ: FRES) went up 820.38%, finishing the session at 2.89.

Shineco Inc. (NASDAQ: SISI) was among the worst performers, plummeting 44.79% to close at 2.49. Similarly, Zapp Electric Vehicles Group Ltd. (NASDAQ: ZAPP) fell 47.91% to end at 9.35 in late trade.

On the New York Stock Exchange, rising equities ended 2094 ahead of decreasing ones by 732, with 87 ending unchanged. On the Nasdaq Stock Exchange, 2039 ended higher and 1280 lower, with 139 ending unchanged.

Kenvue Inc. (NYSE: KVUE) shares dropped to an all-time low of 17.70, down 2.85% or 0.52. Fresh2 Group Ltd DRC (NASDAQ: FRES) shares increased to all-time highs, 2.58 to 2.89, or 820.38%.

Yet another massive market player, Nvidia, reached record highs at close, leading the Nasdaq and S&P 500. Ahead of this week’s scheduled quarterly earnings announcements and inflation statistics, rises in Nvidia and other Wall Street heavyweights propelled the Nasdaq and S&P 500 to all-time-high finishes on Wednesday.

For the Nasdaq, it was the seventh consecutive record-high close, and for the S&P 500, it was the sixth. After Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell boosted expectations for an interest rate cut in September, the S&P 500 crossed 5,600 for the first time.

Markets React to Powell’s Remarks, CPI Data, and Inflation Trends

Ahead of More Powell Remarks, the Nvidia chipmaker rose on strong sales. Wall Street was expecting additional testimony from Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell on Wednesday. Therefore, the Dow Jones forecast projected a decline at first. At the time, the other major stock indexes continued to establish milestones. Today’s first winners on the stock market were Nvidia chip manufacturer Taiwan Semiconductor (TSM) and electric vehicle behemoth Tesla (TSLA).

The S&P 500 increased by 0.3% following the opening bell. Simultaneously, the Dow Jones Industrial Average decreased by less than 0.1%, affecting the forecast. During morning trading, the tech-focused Nasdaq composite saw a 0.5% increase. On Tuesday, the S&P and Nasdaq reached fresh all-time highs.

The Senate Banking Committee was informed by Fed Chair Powell on Tuesday that “labour market conditions have cooled, while remaining strong.” Powell’s portrayal of the job market as status quo notwithstanding, the Fed is still anticipated to shift toward rate decreases at its meeting on September 18.

Powell, however, may moderate expectations about the extent of the Fed’s reduction this year given his lack of immediate concern that the job market is straying from the Fed’s full-employment mission. The consumer price index report on Thursday is more important. For now, increased CPI and lower inflation levels are the keys to Fed rate reductions.

Powell’s hearing before the House Financial Services Committee is set for this Wednesday at 10:00 a.m. ET.

CBOE Volatility Rises While Commodities Continue to Climb  

On Wednesday, the implied volatility of S&P 500 options was up 2.72%, standing at 12.85, according to the CBOE Volatility Index.

In the commodity market, Gold Futures for August rose by a 10.20 (0.43%) upward trajectory. Similarly, crude oil increased by 0.99 (1.22%), reaching $82.40 per barrel. Meanwhile, the September Brent oil contract increased by 0.83% or 0.70, approaching $85.36 a barrel.

The yield on the 10-year Treasury fell slightly to 4.27% early on Wednesday. Meanwhile, USD/JPY increased by 0.25% to 161.71, EUR/USD remained in the same range at 1.07. At 104.70, the US Dollar Index Futures was down 0.10%.

The recent decline in oil prices was maintained, with West Texas Intermediate futures trading at about $81.35 per barrel.

After the opening, two exchange-traded funds gained: the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) and the Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ), up 0.5%.

Following Goldman Sachs’ increase in the company’s price target from 175 to 248 but neutral rating, Tesla’s stock increased by 0.1% on Wednesday morning. Additionally, the company increased its forecast for 2024 earnings, mostly due to increased deliveries.

Market Uptrend Holds, Nasdaq 8% Above 50-Day Average

The Investor’s Business Daily has confirmed that the market uptrend is still in place. Therefore, buying makes total sense as long as the tendency continues. It is worth mentioning that making confident purchases might still be quite challenging, given the Nasdaq is currently trading 8% above its 50-day moving average.

The IBD Live team talked about the state of the stock market today and how investors should handle it on Tuesday’s episode.

With the recent volatility in the stock market, now is a good time to read The Big Picture column. Additionally, be sure to read about how to use IBD’s new exposure limits to adapt to shifting market situations.

The 50 SMA is guiding the Dow Jones forecast as it rises. Supported by an RSI over 50, buyers will aim to break above 39,600 to bring the 40k into focus. In order to extend losses towards the 38,500 level, sellers will need to wipe out the July low at 38,900 and the 50 SMA at 39,080.

After slight gains yesterday, the USD is now slowly declining. Since Powell did not cause a notable FX market reaction with his statement, investors will observe today’s hearing in search of information.

Thomas Martin, senior portfolio manager at Globalt Investments in Atlanta, stated, “TSMC’s report supported the AI narrative, so that more than anything else today is a pretty important data point.”

Tech Giants Surge, Apple Hits Record High as Inflation Reports Loom

Advanced Micro Devices (AMD.O), Nvidia (NVDA.O), and Micron Technology (MU.O) all open new tabs that increase by 3.9%, 2.7%, and 4%, respectively. Apple (AAPL.O), which opened a new tab, saw its stock market value rise to $3.6 trillion after climbing 1.9% to a record high.

Wall Street has been fueled by a small number of large-cap stocks this year, and some investors are concerned that if those businesses’ profits fall short of expectations, there may be a selloff.

Ten billion shares were exchanged on US exchanges, which is comparatively low compared to the average of 11.5 billion shares during the preceding 20 sessions.

This week’s scheduled US inflation reports include the Producer Price Index report on Friday and the Consumer Price Index report on Thursday. According to CME’s FedWatch, expectations of a 25-basis point rate drop by September increased slightly to 74% from roughly 70% on Tuesday and 45% a month ago.

Q2 Earnings Season Kicks Off: Banks Report, Intuit Drops, Illumina Soars

This week’s major banks’ earnings release on Friday will mark the start of the second-quarter earnings season, determining if high-flying megacaps can maintain their good runs and justify their lofty valuations.

After announcing that it intends to lay off roughly 10% of its personnel, the owner of TurboTax, Intuit (INTU.O), opened a new tab that plummeted 2.6%.

Producer of sequencing equipment Illumina (ILMN.O) opens new tab: following news of its acquisition of privately held Fluent BioSciences, the stock of Illumina surged more than 6%.

Advancing issues outnumbered falling within the S&P 500 (.AD.SPX), opening a new tab with a 4.3-to-one ratio.

The S&P 500 posted 33 new highs and 11 new lows; the Nasdaq recorded 65 new highs and 117 new lows.

As the second-quarter earnings season begins, all eyes will be on major banks’ performances on Friday to gauge the sustainability of the current market rally. Investors are cautiously optimistic but remain vigilant. The outcomes of these earnings reports will likely set the tone for the market in the coming weeks.