Nasdaq 100 Rallies To Record Highs, Magnificent 7 Market Cap Tops $17 Trillion, Bitcoin Soars To $100,000: What's Driving Markets Wednesday?

An inline November inflation report unleashed a surge of bullish momentum across markets on Wednesday.

Traders priced in near-certainty of a 25-basis-point rate cut at next week's Federal Reserve meeting, fueling optimism for a more accommodating monetary policy.

The Consumer Price Index rose by 2.7% year-over-year in November, matching expectations. Core inflation — excluding volatile items such as energy and food — remained steady at 3.3%.

Tech stocks took center stage as the Nasdaq 100 rallied 1.7%, notching a fresh record high and logging its best session in over a month. The so-called “Magnificent Seven” mega-cap stocks were the driving force behind the gains.

The Roundhill Magnificent Seven ETF MAGS jumped 2.6%, its best performance since Nov. 6, eyeing its eighth positive session in the last nine trading days.

Six of the seven mega-cap tech giants hit record highs, with the group's combined market cap reaching a staggering $17.3 trillion. Nvidia Corp. NVDA was the sole exception among the elite names.

The S&P 500 joined the rally, climbing 0.9% and nearing its all-time highs. Small-cap stocks added 0.7%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average remained flat, lagging behind its peers.

Improving rate-cut expectations — fed futures now almost fully pricing in a 25-basis-point rate cut next week — supported gold, with the yellow metal rising 0.9% to 2,717 per ounce, heading for a fourth straight session of gains.

Bullish sentiment returned to the crypto market, with Bitcoin BTC/USD rallying 4% to above $100,000 again, almost erasing losses from prior two sessions.

Oil prices rose more than 2% on Wednesday, even as OPEC downgraded its global demand outlook for both 2023 and 2024.

Wednesday’s Performance In Major US Indices, ETFs

According to Benzinga Pro data:

• The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust SPY rose 0.9% to $608.33.
• The SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average DIA flattened at $444.28.
• The tech-heavy Invesco QQQ Trust Series QQQ rallied 1.8% to $529.86.
• The iShares Russell 2000 ETF IWM rose 0.9% to $238.38.
• The Communication Services Select Sector SPDR Fund XLC and the Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR Fund XLC outperformed, both rising 1.6%; the Health Care Select Sector SPDR Fund XLV lagged, down 1.1%.

Wednesday’s Stock Movers

• Alphabet Inc. GOOGL rallied 4.4% after the tech giant announced the launch of Gemini 2.0 AI model.
• Broadcom Inc. AVGO soared 5.7%, ahead of its earnings report slated for Thursday after market closes.
• Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc. WBA dropped 6.5% after surging 17% on Tuesday, following reports of a $7.5 billion sale negotiation with Sycamore Partners.
• Gamestop Corp. GME rallied over 9% in reaction to earnings report.
• Adobe Inc. ADBE rose 0.4% in anticipation of its quarterly results, set to be released after market close.

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