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The small-cap Russell 2000 pushed to an intraday record high on Friday, capping a furious 13-day rally that marks the index’s best run since 2020 and suggesting gains are broadening beyond mega-cap tech leaders.
The move comes less than a month after the U.S.-Iran conflict drove the benchmark into a 10%-plus correction.
A key turning point came on Tuesday, when President Donald Trump announced a two-week pause in military action against Iran.
The ceasefire helped send oil prices tumbling and revived expectations for Federal Reserve rate cuts—an outlook that tends to benefit rate-sensitive small-cap stocks.
Individual stocks have outperformed the index during the rally. Based on one-month market data as of Friday, the following five Russell 2000 names were leading the small-cap board:
Regional banks, which account for more than 20% of the Russell 2000’s sector weighting, have led the advance as the yield curve steepens.
Industrials linked to infrastructure spending and aerospace reshoring have also participated, while beaten-down biotech stocks have staged a relief rally on expectations of lower discount rates.
If the ceasefire holds and the Federal Reserve delivers the cuts traders are now pricing in, the past 13 days may be an early phase of the move rather than its end.
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