New Records: Why the Shutdown Couldn’t Stop the Bulls

Fresh news and strategies for traders. SPY Trader episode #1385. The market displayed remarkable resilience this week, hitting new record highs across major indices (S&P 500, Dow) despite a U.S. government shutdown. The rally is primarily fueled by a continued dovish outlook from the Federal Reserve, which investors believe will proceed with planned rate cuts through 2026, overriding political instability. Technology and AI sectors remain dominant, but Health Care showed surprising strength. Specific stock volatility included Fair Isaac surging 18% on disruptive news, while Palantir and Tesla experienced significant dips. Investors are advised to maintain core AI and broad index exposure (VOO, QQQ), utilize dips in fundamentally sound stocks like Tesla as buying opportunities, and look toward cyclicals (XLF, VNQ) and ratesensitive fixed income (TLT) to capitalize on future rate cuts.