Tepid gains for Wall Street despite Tesla charge
The S&P 500 closed higher on Friday but off session highs, as a Tesla rally failed to galvanise the broader market on the eve of the Federal Reserve's policy meeting and inflation data next week. Tesla shares climbed 4.06 percent, clinching their longest winning streak since January 2021, after General Motors agreed to use the company's Supercharger network. GM shares rose 1.06 percent. The benchmark S&P 500 built on a 20 percent rise from its October 12 finishing low, heralding the start of a new bull market as defined by some market participants. "It's maybe the most hated bull market in the history of bull markets," said Tim Holland, chief investment officer of investment platform Orion OCIO. "Sentiment was terribly depressed going into year-end and still remains on the bearish side." The S&P 500 gained 0.11 percent, at 4,299, taking this week's advance to 0.38 percent and extending its winning streak to four weeks, the longest since the July-August 2022 period. The Nasdaq notched its seventh straight week of gains, adding 0.16 percent, to 13,259 on the day and 0.13 percent on the week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.13 percent, to 33,877, for a weekly gain of 0.33 percent. A megacap stocks rally, better-than-expected earnings season and expectations that the Fed was nearing the end of its rate-hiking cycle have supported Wall Street this year despite concerns about a looming recession and sticky inflation. Shares in tech companies including Apple, Advanced Micro Devices and Nvidia rose between 0.22 percent and 3.20 percent after retreating earlier this week. "The overall tone of the market is based on the idea that the Fed will pause its increases," said Rick Meckler, partner at Cherry Lane Investments. "As it pauses, the broader market will start to rally and maybe catch up with the large-cap tech stocks that have led the way up until now." (Reuters)