Here are some of the stocks posting the biggest moves in midday trading Friday. Mohawk Industries , Builders FirstSource – Home construction plays jumped after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell hinted that rate cuts could be around the corner, sparking hopes for lower borrowing costs. Builders FirstSource jumped 8%, while flooring company Mohawk Industries added 7%. Homebuilder Lennar and the iShares U.S. Home Construction ETF (ITB) both added more than 5%. Semiconductor stocks — Names in the sector jumped alongside the broader market on indication that the Fed could start lowering interest rates next month. The VanEck Semiconductor (SMH) climbed nearly 3%. Microchip Technology rallied about 6%, and On Semiconductor jumped more than 5%. Nvidia popped about 2%, while Broadcom added 3%. Caterpillar — The construction equipment maker rallied about 4%, helping to drive the Dow Industrials to a new record, on optimism that the Federal Reserve will lower interest rates starting in September, boost commercial and industrial activity. S & P 500 industrial stocks (+2%) were outperforming the rest of the market (+1.6%) at midday. Goldman Sachs , American Express – The financial services sector jumped 1.7% on hopes for lower interest rates. Goldman Sachs and American Express jumped 3.7% and 4%, respectively. Regional banks also saw a boost, with the SPDR S & P Regional Banking ETF (KRE) jumping more than 4%. Intuit — The stock pulled back more than 4%. While the financial t …
