NEW YORK, March 21 (Xinhua) -- U.S. stocks ended higher on Thursday, with all three major equity indexes posting back-to-back all-time highs, a day after the Federal Reserve said rate cuts look likely this year.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 269.24 points, or 0.68 percent, to 39,781.37. The S&P 500 added 16.91 points, or 0.32 percent, to 5,241.53. The Nasdaq Composite Index increased 32.43 points, or 0.20 percent, to 16,401.84. It was the first time all three posted back-to-back record closes since Nov. 8, 2021, according to Dow Jones Market Data.

Nine of the 11 primary S&P 500 sectors ended in green, with industrials and financials leading the gainers by going up 1.0 percent and 0.85 percent, respectively. Meanwhile, utilities and communication services declined 0.21 percent and 0.17 percent, respectively.

Major technology stocks, which spearheaded the recent market rally, contributed to the day's positive performance, with Meta Platforms, Microsoft, and Amazon registering gains of almost 1 percent. However, Apple deviated from the broader upward trend in the tech sector, declining by over 4 percent following an antitrust lawsuit filed against the company by the Justice Department. On another front, social media firm Reddit saw a remarkable debut in the market, surging over 40 percent above its initial public offering price.

Those gains came as the Federal Reserve on Wednesday reiterated expectations for three interest rate cuts this year and kept borrowing costs unchanged at the conclusion of its two-day policy meeting.

"People have faith in the Fed right now, and that cuts are coming," said Jay Woods, chief global strategist at Freedom Capital Markets.

"We are in a good place, and the market believes in the smooth landing narrative. Whatever the Fed is saying continues to be the music to the ears of the market," Woods said.

As of Thursday morning, traders were pricing in a nearly 70 percent chance that the Fed begins cutting rates in June, according to CME Group's FedWatch Tool.

However, Julie Biel from Kayne Anderson Rudnick warns that despite the recent optimism, the market might be overly optimistic about the possibility of three rate cuts happening this year. "We need to recognize that this isn't like a slam dunk that we're going to get three or four rate cuts," the portfolio manager said. "There is enough dissent, and there still is a fair amount of spread beyond 2024 into 2025 of where rates are going to be." Enditem

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