<h1>Stocks near records as investors await Fed chair remarks and retail results amid rate-cut bets and risk concerns</h1> U.S. equity markets held near record levels as investors awaited key monetary-policy remarks from the Federal Reserve chair and upcoming retail earnings; regulator approval of a pharmaceutical drug lifted that issuer's U.S. shares, and a private-equity/hotel-led investor group agreed a cash acquisition of a membership-club company. Markets are weighing potential tariff-driven inflation risks against signs of labor-market cooling, with traders pricing an expected rate cut at the Fed's next meeting. Lower Treasury yields and sector concentration among large tech firms raise systemic-risk concerns if growth stalls, while imminent retail results could signal consumer resilience across income segments.