Good morning and almost happy Thanksgiving to our U.S. listeners.

Today is Wednesday, November 27th.

And I'm Rina Sherble, filling in for the incomparable Julie Morgan once again.

Our top stories today, investors set aside Trump's new tariff threats, Fed signals moderate pace

in cutting rates, and a flurry of retail earnings. Major U.S. stock averages finished higher

on Tuesday with investors setting aside President-elect Donald Trump's new tariff threats, while the Federal Reserve signaled a moderate pace in cutting interest rates.

Nine of the 11 sectors on the S&P 500 rose topped by the defensive utilities group and communication services.

Materials lagged all other sectors.

Investors were considering the macro backdrop for stocks

with updates from Trump late Monday and the Fed on Tuesday.

Tuesday's gains came after Wall Street's positive finish on Monday

as investors appear to embrace Trump's nomination

of a hedge fund veteran as Treasury Secretary. Andrew Hecht, investing group leader of Hecht

Commodity Report, told Seeking Alpha, quote, the markets have digested the election results

and incoming cabinet nominations, which have been mostly bullish for stocks. Bonds could move higher

over the coming weeks, as the nomination for Treasury Secretary has been mostly warmly received

as stable and competent by the market. The Fed on Tuesday struck a cautious tone in its November

meeting minutes with policymakers discussing the possibility of pausing rate cuts

if inflation remains too elevated. Members collectively said it would likely be appropriate

to move gradually toward a more neutral policy stance. The Fed has cut rates by 75 basis points this year

to between 4.5% and 4.75%. A potential source of inflationary risk

lies in Trump's plans to levy 25% tariffs on goods coming from Mexico and Canada. He'll also look

...