Expectations for Rate Cuts Propel Bond Price Rise

A huge two-month rally in bond prices, powered by expectations that central banks will soon be cutting interest rates, has rescued fixed-income markets from an almost unheard-of third straight year of declines.   The Nasdaq Composite index gained 0.02 percent while the S&P 500 slipped 0.04 percent and the Dow Jones Industrial average lost 0.06 percent.