To no one’s surprise, U.S. Fed Chair Jay Powell held America’s key interest rate steady on Wednesday afternoon. Markets on both sides of the border were already climbing before his remarks, but accelerated after. The S&P closed 1.05% higher, the Nasdaq jumped 1.64% to finish above 13,000, while the Dow added 0.67%. There was green pretty much across the board.
Major movers were AMD up 9.69%, Amazon 2.94%, Martin Mareitta Materials 7.39%, but luxury names sank, including Estee Lauder which finished -18.9%. Paycom delivered a miss and weak guidance and plunged 38.49%. Meanwhile, the U.S. 10-year yield slid to 3.742%. Bitcoin added 0.55% to nearly $35,000.
The TSX rallied 1.09% with every sector except materials gaining. Consumer staples and utilities jumped. Major movers on Bay Street were Brookfield Corporation by 4.78%, Brookfield Infrastructure up 10.8%, Dye & Durham 7.66%, Algonquin Power 4.87%, though First Quantum Minerals sank another 8.03%. WTI crude was flat at $81.