Wall Street closes higher — Nasdaq extends rally to five days as markets price in a Fed rate cut

U.S. markets ended trading Friday on a strong note, as the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.65% to 23,365.69 — marking its fifth consecutive day of gains — even though the index remains down about 2% for November. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 climbed 0.54% to 6,849.09, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 289.30 points to finish at 47,716.42, rounding out a broadly positive, holiday‑shortened session. The boost to investor sentiment stems largely from bets that the Federal Reserve may begin cutting interest rates as soon as December. Markets responded eagerly after dovish remarks by officials, including the president of the New York Fed, who cited “further adjustment” to monetary policy as plausible — triggering expectations of near‑term rate cuts. Overall, Friday’s session capped a surprisingly resilient month for equities: despite November’s volatility and pressure on tech and AI‑linked stocks, the rally shows that investors are leaning into the possibility of looser monetary policy and renewed risk‑on sentiment. #WallStreet #FedRateCut #NasdaqRally #USMarkets #SlimScan #GrowthStocks #CANSLIM