Stocks - Wall Street Hits Highs as Powell Hints Rate Cut Is Ahead

Stocks rallied Wednesday and hit new highs after Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell assured lawmakers the central bank will do what it can to sustain the economic expansion. The Fed will "act as appropriate," Powell told the House Financial Service Committee in the first of two days of testimony about the state of the economy. It is a phrase he has used often in the last few months because he and the Fed are worried about the domestic economy and slowing business investment, trade disputes and other issues affecting global economic health. But it was music to investors' ears. The NASDAQ Composite surged 0.75%, hitting new closing and intraday highs. The S&P 500 jumped at the open, briefly topping 3,300 for the first time before dropping back to a 0.45% gain. The Dow Jones industrials added 0.3%, also reaching a new intraday high of 26,983 before falling back.