CNBC Business News Update - Market Close: Stocks Higher in a "Rate Cut Rally," S&P 500 Index and Nasdaq at Records, Costco To Raise Membership Fees 7/10/24

Episode Date: July 10, 2024

From Wall Street to Main Street, the latest on the markets and what it means for your money. Updated regularly on weekdays, featuring CNBC expert analysis and sound from top business newsmakers. Anchored and reported by CNBC's Jessica Ettinger.

I'm Jessica Edinger, CNBC. Wall Street opens Thursday morning after what some are calling a rate cut rally for stocks. Fresh record highs for the S&P 500 index, which crossed 5,600 for the first time ever, and for the Nasdaq. Apple shares hit their seventh straight record high. Tesla shares now have been up 11 days in a row. The Dow was up 429 points on Wednesday, more than 1%. The S&P 500 index up 56 points. That's more than 1%, closing at 5633. The Nasdaq up 218 points, more than 1%. So we do have this tacit acknowledgement that we're probably within

a couple of months of the first rate cut, still with a 4% to 5% nominal GDP growth economy. So we do have this tacit acknowledgement that we're probably within a couple of months of the first rate cut, still with a four to five percent nominal GDP growth economy. So all that is just a nice backdrop in general. Here's what we also know. Great first half of the year usually means a positive second half. The average up year in the stock market up year is 20 percent plus. We're not there yet. First half of July is positive. CNBC's Mike Santoli. Companies whose shares hit new record highs on Wednesday include Walmart, Hilton, Google parent Alphabet, Royal Caribbean, TJ Maxx, and Marshall's parent TJX companies, Eli Lilly, and we mentioned Apple earlier. Fed Chair Jay Powell told Congress over two days of testimony that while the Fed's target is 2% inflation,

an interest rate cut will come before the CPI, the Consumer Price Index, a measure of inflation, gets to that number. You don't want to wait until inflation gets all the way down to 2% because inflation has a certain momentum. You wouldn't wait that long. If you waited that long, you probably waited too long because inflation will be moving downward and will go well below 2%, which we don't want. Investors are thinking that whether the interest rate cut comes in September or later, many say at least one is on the way. He lowered the landing gear. By that I mean he's setting us up for a September cut and maybe even the day after election cut. Blank shines Robert Schein on CNBC. Investors waiting now for new inflation data coming with the CPI for June. New consumer price index data out Thursday morning. CPI report,

we think we're going to be down to a 3.2% year-over-year number. So we're edging ever closer to that Fed's 2% target. I think that's enough progress for the Fed to begin to cuss in September. JP Morgan's David Kelly on CNBC. Costco increasing membership fees in the U.S. and Canada for the first time since 2017. Regular members will pay $5 more and its high tier membership fee goes up by $10. Senators have agreed on a bipartisan deal for a ban on stock trading by members of Congress. Conflict of interest has long been a concern for lawmakers. CNBC's Andrew Ross Sorkin mentioned a glaring one on Squawk Box a few months back.

When you see a congressman, and there was one who was part of writing the bill against TikTok, then buy shares of Meta two weeks later, by default, the American public says, what is going on here? The new deal would forbid members of Congress, their spouses and dependent children, as well as the president and vice president, from buying and selling stock while in office. McDonald's has a new dessert on menus, the Kit Kat Banana Split McFlurry, for the summer for a limited time. On Thursday's watch list, we get the latest on inflation, that's CPI out at 8.30 a.m. Eastern time. Earnings are coming from PepsiCo, Delta Airlines, and ConAgra. We find out how many people applied for unemployment benefits last week.

And it's July 11th, 7-11 day. The chain hands out free small slurpees. Jessica Ettinger, CNBC. When you're at your very top speed, it feels like you can run forever. And then there's this one moment where everybody else starts to die. And you're like, I'm not about to die. I'm about to get faster. The Olympics from Paris starts July 26th on NBC and Peacock.