U.S. stocks are hovering around their record levels on Tuesday as Wall Street seems poised for yet another day of quiet trading. The S&P 500 was 0.2% higher in midday trading and on pace to surpass its previous record set last week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 78 points, or 0.2%, while the Nasdaq composite was up 0.1% after reaching a new all-time high.
Stock market indexes have been hitting record highs on expectations of a potential interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve later this year to combat inflation. Strong corporate earnings reports have also been driving the market higher.
Zoom Video Communications saw a 1% gain after posting better-than-expected earnings for the latest quarter. Meanwhile, Lam Research announced a stock buyback program of up to $10 billion and a 10-for-one stock split, leading to a 1.6% increase in its stock price.
Palo Alto Networks, on the other hand, suffered a 4% decline despite beating profit expectations, as its revenue forecast fell slightly short.
Trump Media & Technology Group, the company behind Truth Social network, saw an 8.5% drop in its stock price after reporting a net loss of $327.6 million in its first quarterly report as a publicly traded company.
Lowe's stock fell 3% despite reporting better quarterly results than anticipated, citing high interest rates as a reason for a potential decrease in sales.
The Federal Reserve's strategy of maintaining high interest rates to control inflation has resulted in higher costs for mortgages and credit, putting a damper on consumer spending. However, recent reports indicating a potential moderation in inflation have raised hopes for future rate cuts by the Fed.
Treasury yields declined as hopes for rate cuts grew, providing some relief for the stock market. The upcoming profit reports from companies like Nvidia and Target will likely drive market movements in the absence of major economic data releases this week.
Stock markets in Europe and Asia experienced losses, with Hong Kong and Shanghai indexes dropping after an updated forecast for Chinese economic growth by S&P Global Market Intelligence.
AP Business Writers Yuri Kageyama and Matt Ott contributed to this article.