S&P 500 Adds Over $3 Trillion Since August Lows, Sets Stage for Jackson Hole Symposium This Week

Wall Street anticipates Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell will signal upcoming interest-rate cuts at the Jackson Hole symposium. The focus has moved from the likelihood of cuts to the extent of them. Eric Beiley of Steward Partners Global Advisory notes that confirmation of cuts would positively impact stocks, while silence could trigger a selloff. This is critical as money managers have recently invested heavily in Big Tech, driving the S&P 500 Index higher.

The market is pricing in a rate reduction at the Fed's September meeting. However, Powell may not disclose the timing or magnitude of cuts, which could disappoint markets that are confident in an imminent easing. Any unexpected deviation from this expectation could disrupt the S&P 500's $3.3 trillion recovery post-August, especially with US equities experiencing significant inflows recently, as per EPFR Global data cited by Bank of America Corp.