The S&P 500 (SPX) finished at a record high on Thursday. That happened even though the week was packed with negative headlines. Nvidia (NVDA) reported slower growth after years of booming demand. Tariffs on imports started to bite, raising costs for businesses. President Trump also escalated his fight with the Federal Reserve, which created new questions about the central bank’s independence.
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Despite all of that, investors kept buying. There are three main reasons why the rally has not stopped.
1. Traders Care About Policy, Not Political Drama
Markets are not a place where people vote for or against political figures. Investors are trying to judge how events will affect the value of their holdings. The current battle over Fed governor Lisa Cook is dramatic, but traders are focused on whether it will change the path of interest rates. So far, they see no shift.
Rate cuts are still expected to begin this fall. This is what shapes bond yields and stock valuations. For this reason, the political noise is not enough to turn the market lower. In past cycles, traders did not sell stocks because of hearings, lawsuits, or leadership battles. They sold when earnings collapsed or when the economy fell into recession. The same pattern is playing out now.
2. Prices Move on Confidence as Much as Numbers
Stock prices are not always set by balance sheets and forecasts. They are also shaped by how confident or fearful investors feel. At the moment, the VIX index, which tracks expected volatility, is sitting near its lowest point of the year. Low volatility gives investors the sense that it is safe to keep adding to positions.
Nvidia’s results show how this works. Growth has slowed compared with its breakneck pace, yet the company still generated more than $46 billion in revenue last quarter. For many traders, the long-term story of artificial intelligence is still strong. That belief helps offset weaker guidance in the short term.
Momentum also plays a role. When stocks are rising, funds and individuals often buy simply because prices are moving higher. That keeps demand steady, even if not every headline is positive.
3. Stocks Usually Climb Slowly Before They Fall Fast
The saying that stocks go up by the stairs and down by the elevator still holds true. Gains tend to build over time, while losses usually come all at once. Right now, the environment is still supportive of gradual gains.
Economic data has not collapsed. Growth is holding up, inflation is easing, and consumers are still spending. These signs give investors confidence that profits will not fall sharply.
The new tariffs fit into the same pattern. They are disruptive to trade and will raise costs for some companies, but Wall Street sees the overall impact as limited for now. A $10 billion hit is small compared with the size of the U.S. economy. Until tariffs clearly cut into earnings, the market is likely to look past them.
There is also cash waiting to be deployed. Money market funds hold trillions of dollars, and some of that money is moving back into stocks as bond yields come down. This provides a steady base of demand under the market, which helps keep the rally intact.
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