Wall Street Recovers: Powell's Speech Anticipation Calm Markets

Wall Street's main indexes rose on Friday as the S&P 500 aimed to break a five-day losing streak. Investors awaited a key address by Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, while Nvidia and Intuit faced stock challenges. Alphabet's significant cloud deal with Meta boosted its shares.

Wall Street's primary indexes experienced a rise on Friday, following a series of losses, as investors eagerly anticipated U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's speech at the Jackson Hole Symposium for clues on future interest rate directions. At 10 a.m. ET, Powell's address is set to potentially influence the expectations for a rate cut in September.

Michael Matousek from U.S. Global Investors highlighted the cautionary stance Powell may adopt due to the recent tariff effects. Markets initially increased bets for a rate cut after August's weak payrolls report and limited tariff pressures on consumer prices.

Significant market moves included Alphabet's shares climbing after a $10 billion cloud deal with Meta, while Nvidia and Intuit faced declines due to various challenges. Advancing issues surpassed decliners at both the NYSE and Nasdaq.

(With inputs from agencies.)