Why are stocks soaring as the economy melts down? Thank the Fed.

Pablo Martinez Monsivais/AP The stock market climbed for a second straight week, ignoring gloomy economic forecasts and bleak data as traders find a silver lining in the Federal Reserve. In recent weeks, the Fed has used both old and new programs to ensure credit flows where it's needed, signaling to investors that the public health crisis won't necessarily translate into a financial-market collapse. While the central bank's spate of relief efforts haven't directly lifted stocks, the policies "d...