The market keeps doing its thing, and that thing right now is climbing. The S&P 500 closed at a record high on Tuesday, powered by another surge in artificial intelligence stocks, while investor sentiment continued to improve and plant itself firmly in "Greed" territory.
The CNN Money Fear and Greed index ticked up to 59.2 from its prior reading of 57.3, staying comfortably in the greed zone. For context, this index measures market sentiment on a scale from 0 to 100, where 0 represents maximum fear and 100 signals maximum greediness. It's based on seven equal-weighted indicators, built on the premise that fear pushes stock prices down while greed lifts them up.
Tuesday's rally came despite some notable economic data that complicated the Federal Reserve picture. Gross domestic product expanded at a 4.3% annualized pace in the third quarter, handily beating estimates around 3.3% and marking the fastest growth rate in two years. That's good news for the economy, but it's the kind of strength that makes Fed officials less eager to cut rates.
And traders noticed. Markets now price roughly a 15% probability of a 25-basis-point cut in late January, down from 20% a day earlier. Expectations have narrowed to just two cuts in 2026, with June and September seen as the most likely windows. Strong growth means less urgency to ease monetary policy.
Other economic data painted a mixed picture. U.S. industrial production increased 0.1% per month across October and November. Meanwhile, durable goods orders declined by 2.2% month-over-month to $307.4 billion in October, compared to a revised 0.7% growth from September. That was actually better than market estimates of a 1.5% decline.
On the individual stock front, Novo Nordisk (NVO) shares jumped more than 7% following FDA approval of its Wegovy pill, giving the pharma giant another weight-loss product to compete with in an increasingly crowded market.
Most sectors on the S&P 500 closed positive, with communication services, information technology, and energy stocks recording the biggest gains. Consumer staples and health care stocks bucked the trend, closing lower.
The Dow Jones closed higher by around 80 points to 48,442.41. The S&P 500 rose 0.46% to 6,909.79, while the Nasdaq Composite jumped 0.57% to 23,561.84.
Worth noting: The New York Stock Exchange will close at 1 p.m. ET on Wednesday and will be closed Thursday for Christmas Day. So if you're planning any last-minute trading moves, you've got a shortened window.
