Gains likely to go on amid race for Fed chair

US stocks rose last week as speculative fervour mounted in various sectors, helped by optimism about interest rates and tax policy.

Gains will likely continue this week as long as big banks, the Trump administration or North Korea don't get in the way. The SPDR Financial Select Sector exchange-traded fund, which tracks the financial sector of the Standard & Poor's 500, traded at its highest level since the financial crisis last week.

That might seem strange, given that major banks including JPMorgan Chase and Bank of America have warned that third-quarter earnings will be hurt by the moribund activity on global markets.

The upward surge in stock and bond markets may be good for buyers but it's bad for the dealers that connect buyers and sellers. The latest speculative rush into bank stocks began, or rather resumed, two weeks ago when Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen made it clear that she was ready to increase interest rates. F…