S&P 500 trading close to dot-com bubble levels

There are several other risks that continue to hang over the market.

Congress is continuing to argue about whether and how to deliver another round of aid to the economy. Investors say the assistance is crucial following the expiration of weekly unemployment benefits and other stimulus from Washington’s last round of aid.

Critics also say the market may have run too high, too quickly, even after acknowledging that investors are setting prices for stocks now based on where they see earnings trending in the future. The S&P 500 is trading close to levels last seen when the dot-com bubble was deflating in the early 2000s, based on stock prices relative to expected earnings in the next 12 months.

Of course, underlying all that remains the Federal Reserve. It has slashed short-term interest rates to nearly zero and is likely to keep them there for a while. At the same time, it continues to buy reams of bonds to support markets and the economy.

Investors are waiting to hear from Fed Chair Jerome Powell later this week at a speech that he would normally give at Jackson Hole, Wyoming. But the 2020 economic policy symposium will be online.

Investors closely follow speeches given at the annual Jackson Hole event, where Fed officials in the past have made huge market-moving headlines. This year’s event is titled “Navigating the Decade Ahead: Implications for Monetary Policy.”-AP