Decision ‘08

The Bush Economy, Redux

Fed-watchers think the end of rate hikes is near, and on top of the higher GDP revision, the Dow had a giant day:

Blue chips scored their biggest gains in three years Thursday, with the Dow industrials soaring 217 points as investors bet the end of Fed rate hikes may be approaching.

The rally came after the Federal Reserve raised a key overnight bank lending rate a quarter-percentage point to 5.25 percent, as expected - the 17th straight increase since the central bank began raising rates in June 2004.

In its closely watched statement, the Fed left the door open for future increases, but some investors saw signs in the language indicating that the central bank may pause after its latest move.

One day does not a market make, and there is some ground to gain after the last couple of months, but we’ll take it…