The Dow closed at a record high on Friday. Investors see more gains ahead as the Fed kicks off a new cycle of easing interest rates.

Over the past couple of years, the US economy has wrung out inflation like dirty mop water from just about every sector — except for the housing market, which remains paralyzed by high prices and chronically low supply.

Prospects of a “soft landing,” where the Fed brings down inflation without pushing the economy into recession, have lifted stocks and bonds this year, though signs of a softening labor market have fueled worries that the Fed may be too late in acting to shore up growth.