This Week on Wall Street
Your weekly cheat sheet — what's moving markets, what's coming up, and what it means for your portfolio. No jargon, just clarity.
This Week in Markets
Wall Street surged on Wednesday as Democrats swept both chambers of Congress in the U.S. midterm elections, with the Dow Jones soaring 3.03% (1,569 points) to 53,356.12 — its best single-session gain since April 2025 — while the S&P 500 climbed 1.58% to 7,688.62 and the Nasdaq Composite added 1.44% to 25,736.51. The VIX cratered to 16.61 as election uncertainty lifted, and the Fear & Greed Index rose to 28, in Fear territory, up sharply from Tuesday's Extreme Fear reading. Consumer Discretionary, Healthcare, and Communication Services led sector gains — Amazon jumped roughly 7% and hospital and Medicaid-linked insurers rallied on hopes for friendlier policy — while Energy was pounded as WTI crude collapsed 8.3% to $88.12 on hopes for an end to the Iran conflict, even as gold rallied to $4,070 on a softer dollar. Wednesday's ISM Services PMI rose to 52.4, confirming the services sector returned to growth, while the 10-Year Treasury yield eased to about 4.91% and the Fed Funds Rate holds at 3.75–4.00%. Thursday brings the weekly jobless claims report and earnings from Humana and Vistra, with Friday's October jobs report the week's final test.