On Thursday, the S&P 500 closed above 5,700 for the first time, while the Dow jumped above the 42,000 level. Here's what CNBC is watching going into Friday.

Do rate cuts with the stock market at or near all-time highs provide bulls additional fuel or do they portend trouble ahead? Dow Jones Market Data ran back the tape.

The U.S. dollar edged slightly lower in choppy trading on Wednesday as markets grappled with the supersized 50 basis point interest rate cut as well as the switch to an easing monetary policy stance delivered by the Federal Reserve.

Oil futures rose Thursday, gaining ground alongside global equities and other assets perceived as risky, a day after the Federal Reserve delivered a large interest-rate cut and set the stage for further easing of monetary policy.

The Federal Reserve on Wednesday cut its benchmark interest rate by an unusually large half-point, a dramatic shift after more than two years of high rates that helped tame inflation but also made borrowing painfully expensive for American consumers.

Traders on Thursday added to bets the U.S. Federal Reserve's next rate cut will be smaller than the one it delivered on Wednesday, after economic data showed an unexpected drop in unemployment insurance claims.

A rally that briefly drove stocks to their all-time highs bumped into a wall as the Federal Reserve signaled it’s not in a rush to ease policy after cutting rates by a half-point.