New York CNN —
It’s only early January, but so far in 2023 the pendulum on Wall Street has swung (to paraphrase Billy Joel) from sadness to euphoria.
Stocks are off to a solid start following last year’s dismal performance. The Dow, S&P 500 and Nasdaq all rallied again Monday and each index is up between 2% and 3% since the start of the new year.
Even the CNN Business Fear and Greed Index, which looks at seven indicators of market sentiment, is now inching closer to Greed territory — after languishing in Fear mode for the better part of the past few weeks.
But why is there such optimism on Wall Street all of a sudden? The headlines still aren’t necessarily that great.
Yes, the market cheered Friday’s jobs report because it showed slowing wage growth that could lead to a further reduction in inflation pressuresand smaller rate hikes from …