Wall Street's gloom lifts as markets catch a ray of light

Good morning. Spring is often a good time to sell a house. But amid DOGE's sweeping budget cuts, this year could be completely different — if buyers realize how much leverage they have.

In today's big story, the markets finally have a glimmer of hope.

What's on deck

Markets: Want to work at Balyasny? Get ready to pitch some stocks.

Tech: The streaming wars are over. The rich won.

Business: Harvard has a high-stakes strategy to fend off Trump.

But first, hope at last!

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It came in the form of the latest inflation data.

After being dealt blow after blow amid President Donald Trump's trade war, markets finally found a reason to rise.

The consumer price index rose 0.2%, showing that prices cooled slightly more last month than economists had expected. The increase was the smallest in four months — and enough to immediately lift spirits and markets alike.

Though major US indexes pared increases as the day progressed, Magnificent Seven tech stocks all gained, notably Nvidia and Tesla.

The data was enough to give markets more confidence that the Federal Reserve has additional flexibility to fight a stalling economy with rate cuts — one of its most crucial anti-recession tools, BI's Jennifer Sor writes.

It also alleviated — at least temporarily — half the equation for a fate worse than a recession: stagflation (the dreaded S-word).

So, are we at the bottom yet?

David Kostin, the chief US equity strategist at Goldman Sachs, issued a note on Tuesday that laid out three factors that could drive a swift recovery in the stock market:

• Change in the economic growth outlook

• Valuations have to hit attractive levels

• Depressed investor positioning

Kostin added that only one of these things needs to be triggered for the rally to restart — and at least one of them is starting to happen.

1. A silver lining amid Trump-induced market mayhem. Investors are exhausted after recent financial market chaos, but there's one perk for weary homebuyers: lower mortgage rates. The 30- and 15-year mortgage rates have both steadily dipped for six weeks straight alongside bond yields.

2. Balyasny's intern-recruiting tactic involves some friendly competition. The $23 billion hedge fund hosted its first-ever stock-pitching contest for college students last October, and it's now a regular part of the recruiting process. The top teams get prize money, but the real reward is an interview for the firm's summer internship.