Wall Street closes week with record flourish

The benchmark S&P 500 closed above 4,500 for the first time on Friday, and comments made by the Fed chief are credited as part of the reason. In his highly anticipated speech, Jerome Powell said the Federal Reserve would not overreact to rising inflation or raise interest rates anytime soon, reports the Wall Street Journal.

Powell also reiterated that the central bank would likely begin pulling back on some of its monetary stimulus later this year, but that move was anticipated, reports CNBC. The S&P rose 39 points to 4,509, the Dow rose 242 points to 35,455, and the Nasdaq rose 183 points to a record 15,129.

“Interest rate hikes are far, far away, and investors are happy about that,” Michael Arone of State Street Global Advisors told CNBC.