Stocks on track for best January in 30 years

The S&P 500 and the Dow are each up more than 7% this month. Those mark the biggest gains since January 1987 and January 1989, respectively.

The S&P 500 is on track for its best monthly overall gain since October 2015, according to Jodie Gunzberg, head of US Equities at S&P Dow Jones Indices.

Stocks have surged in recent weeks because of relatively strong corporate earnings, continued optimism about the US economy and a big shift in the Federal Reserve's interest rate plans for the rest of this year.

The Dow has been led by nearly 20% surges in blue chips Boeing (BA), IBM (IBM) and Goldman Sachs (GS). Each reported good fourth-quarter results and healthy outlooks.

Tech stocks have surged as well, largely because of solid earnings. The Nasdaq has gained 10% since the start of the year. FAANG stocks Facebook (FB) and Netflix (NFLX) each spiked nearly 30% this month on the back of robust earnings and outlooks.

Amazon (AMZN), which will report its results after the closing bell Thursday, has shot up nearly 15%. Google owner Alphabet (GOOGL), which reports February 4, is up nearly 10%.

Even Apple (AAPL), which started the year with a shocking sales warning that sent its stock plunging, is now up 6.5% this month after its latest results weren't as bad as investors feared.

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But stocks really took off after Fed chair Jerome Powell indicated on January 4 that the central bank would be "patient" when it comes to any future rate hikes. Powell reiterated that stance Wednesday, which pushed the Dow up 435 points.

For now, optimism about the US economy trumps other lingering worries — including the ongoing US-China trade war, as well as the economic slowdown in China, Brexit uncertainties and Italy's recession.

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