Wall Street Got the Rally Signals From Powell It Was Hoping For

For much of this month, Wall Street traders piled into stocks and bonds, betting that the Federal Reserve was finally ready to start cutting interest rates again. All they were waiting on was the green light from Jerome Powell to keep the rally going.

They got exactly what they were looking for on Friday, when the Fed chair unleashed the biggest cross-markets surge since April by striking a dovish tone during a highly anticipated speech.

Treasuries rallied, driving two-year yields down as much as 12 basis points, and futures traders made bets that a September rate cut is very likely ...