Wall Street Hits Record Highs Ahead of Fed Rate Decision and US-China Trade Optimism

U.S. stock futures were steady on Monday evening after Wall Street’s main indexes closed at record highs, fueled by growing optimism over an expected Federal Reserve rate cut and progress in U.S.-China trade talks.

As of 20:00 ET (00:00 GMT), S&P 500 Futures edged up 0.1% to 6,914.50, Nasdaq 100 Futures gained 0.2% to 26,008.75, and Dow Jones Futures rose 0.1% to 47,749.0. Earlier, the Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 0.7%, the S&P 500 climbed 1.2%, and the NASDAQ Composite jumped 1.9% — marking new all-time highs for the second straight session.

The rally was led by strong gains in technology and consumer discretionary stocks, as investors looked ahead to a crucial week of central bank decisions and corporate earnings. Markets are widely expecting the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates by 25 basis points at its two-day policy meeting starting Tuesday, lowering the federal funds rate to a 3.75%-4.00%range. The move comes after a softer-than-expected September CPI report reinforced expectations for monetary easing.

Investor confidence also improved following reports of constructive trade discussions between U.S. and Chinese officialsin Kuala Lumpur. The talks reportedly laid the groundwork for a potential trade framework deal, which could be finalized during the upcoming meeting between President Donald Trump and President Xi Jinping. The agreement may include rolling back certain tariffs and easing restrictions on rare-earth exports.

Meanwhile, Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM) surged over 11% after launching a new AI chip, intensifying competition with Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA) and AMD (NASDAQ:AMD). The broader chip sector rallied on the news, boosting overall market sentiment.

Investors are also gearing up for a busy earnings week, with major reports expected from Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL), Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT), Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL), Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN), and Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META). The “Magnificent 7” tech giants continued to drive gains, supported by strong expectations for growth in artificial intelligence and cloud computing.