The Globe and Mail reports in its Saturday edition that the S&P 500 index cruised well above 6,100 last week, marking its highest level since February. The Globe's David Berman writes that the S&P flirted with a record high Thursday, and is now up 27.1 per cent from its recent low in April. Perhaps most importantly, the U.S. blue-chip benchmark has led the world over the past month. The U.S. market's impressive rebound over the past three months is surprising, but it likely reflects a better outlook for the second half of the year. It suggests that investors no longer expect a recession and are growing convinced that U.S. President Donald Trump has made a policy pivot after delaying some tariffs, according to Lori Calvasina at RBC Capital Markets. First-quarter corporate earnings held up better than expected and are on track to rise 13.7 per cent from the same period last year. And a pickup in inflation has been noticeably absent, as of May, despite concerns earlier in the year that Mr. Trump's initial policies would stoke price increases. If inflation remains low through the summer, the Federal Reserve might have confidence to cut interest rates, potentially fuelling the bull market as trade tensions subside.