Dow near record high because traders are calling bluff on ‘higher-for-longer’ Fed

U.S. stocks were trading near two-year highs on Friday as traders brushed off tough talk from Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell about it being too soon to talk about rate cuts. Powell, in a speech at Spelman College in Atlanta, said it would be premature to speculate on when policy might ease, while repeating that the Fed remains ready to raise interest rates if needed, as it works to bring inflation down to its 2% yearly target. While the Fed exerts control over short-term rates, now at a 22-year high...