Microsoft drives S&P 500 near record high

Gains in Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) shares pushed the benchmark S&P 500 within striking distance of its record high, a day after the Federal Reserve cut interest rates as expected but played down hopes of further monetary easing. The software giant's plans to buy back $40 billion in shares also boosted the Dow and the Nasdaq, while driving a 0.7% gain in the wider technology sector (SPLRCT). The three main Wall Street indexes have recovered all their losses from August, when renewed U.S.-China trade fears and the prospect of a looming recession had led U.S. stock markets to record their second monthly decline of 2019.