US stocks ended a wobbly week and a volatile month on a high note as the latest reading of the Federal Reserve's preferred inflation gauge bolstered rate-cut hopes and kept the central bank on track for a policy pivot in September.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) rose about 0.6%, moving up from the record close notched on Thursday. The S&P 500 (^GSPC) jumped 1%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) added 1.1%.
At the end of August's last trading day, all three major indexes notched wins for the month, overcoming earlier losses.
Stocks took a mostly upbeat tone, with recession fears and the early-August rout in the rear-view mirror and a long-awaited start to Fed easing just ahead.
Wall Street welcomed the update on the Personal Consumption Expenditures index, which showed prices increased in line with expectations in July. "Core" inflation — which strips out food and energy prices — rose 0.2% month-on-month, as expected. The annual rate came in at 2.6%, matching June's level and undershooting the 2.7% forecast.
PCE inflation levels are closely tracked by the Fed and so are watched closely in turn by investors to calibrate the size and pace of interest rate cuts this year. After Chair Jerome Powell last week made it clear a pivot can be expected in September, bets on a 0.5% cut have mounted amid signs of strength in the economy. The steady level of price pressures in July kept a 0.25% move lower in play.
Meanwhile, investors are moving on from the Nvidia (NVDA) earnings watch that held markets in thrall this week. Despite the late-stage turnaround, the Nasdaq Composite settled for a weekly loss after choppy trading from technology companies dragged down the average.
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