Tech companies led a broad rally for U.S. stocks Tuesday, a boost for the market in a holiday-shortened trading session before the Christmas break.
The S&P 500 rose 0.7%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 177 points, or 0.4%, as of 11:20 a.m. Eastern time. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite was up 1%.
Chip company Broadcom rose 2.6%, while semiconductor giant Nvidia, whose enormous valuation gives it an outsize influence on indexes, rose 1.1%. Super Micro Computer jumped 4.6%.
Tesla climbed 5.2% for the biggest gain among S&P 500 stocks. Amazon.com rose 1.5%
American Airlines slipped 0.4% after the airline briefly grounded flights nationwide due to a technical issue.
U.S. Steel edged up 0.1% a day after an influential government panel failed to reach consensus on the possible national security risks of the nearly $15 billion proposed sale to Nippon Steel of Japan.
NeueHealth surged 70.1% after the health care company agreed to be taken private in a deal valued at roughly $1.3 billion.
Treasury yields rose in the bond market. The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 4.62% from 4.59% late Monday.
European markets were mostly higher. Markets in Asia mostly gained ground.
U.S. markets will close at 1 p.m. Eastern and stay closed Wednesday for Christmas.
Wall Street has several economic reports to look forward to this week, including a weekly update on unemployment benefits on Thursday.
Tuesday’s rally comes as the stock market enters what’s historically been a very cheerful season. The last five trading days of each year, plus the first two in the new year, have brought an average gain of 1.3% since 1950. The so-called “Santa rally” also correlates closely with positive returns in January and the upcoming year.
So far this month, the U.S. stock market has lost some of its gains since President-elect Donald Trump’s win on Election Day, which raised hopes for faster economic growth and more lax regulations that would boost corporate profits. Worries have risen that Trump’s preference for tariffs and other policies could lead to higher inflation, a bigger U.S. government debt and difficulties for global trade.
Even so, the stock market remains on pace to deliver strong returns for 2024. The benchmark S&P 500 is up about 26% so far this year and remains within roughly 1.3% of the all-time high it set earlier this month — its latest of 57 record highs this year.
The U.S. stock market is drifting lower following mixed data on the economy’s strength. The S&P 500 fell 0.4% Tuesday and remains a bit below its all-time high set last week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 271 points, and the Nasdaq composite was mostly unchanged. Treasury yields eased a bit after the reports on the U.S. job market, retail sales and business activity did little to clear uncertainty about where the Federal Reserve may take interest rates next year. AI stocks, which have been under heavy pressure recently, were mixed. Stock indexes fell across much of Europe and Asia.
Many U.S. consumers say they’ve noticed higher than usual prices for holiday gifts in recent months, according to a a December poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. A contributing factor is the unusually high import taxes the Trump administration put on foreign goods. While the worst-case consumer impact that many economists foresaw from the administration’s trade policies hasn’t materialized, some popular gift items have been affected more than others. Most toys and electronics sold in the U.S. come from China. So do most holiday decorations. Jewelry prices have risen due to the cost of gold.
A sell-off for Oracle is weighing on Wall Street as investors question whether its big spending on artificial-intelligence technology will pay off. The S&P 500 was mostly unchanged Thursday and hovering around its all-time high set in October. Drops for AI-related stocks dragged the Nasdaq composite down 0.6%. Oracle at one point was heading toward its worst loss since 2001 on worries about how much it plans to spend on AI infrastructure. But most stocks on Wall Street rose, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 600 points. Treasury yields slipped after a report showed more U.S. workers applied for unemployment benefits.
The U.S. stock market is flirting with its all-time high after the Federal Reserve cut its main interest rate to bolster the job market. The S&P 500 rose 0.8% Wednesday and was on track to squeak past its all-time closing high, which was set in October. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 559 points, and the Nasdaq composite rose 0.4%. Wall Street loves lower interest rates because they can boost the economy and goose prices for investments, even if they have the potential of making inflation worse. Treasury yields eased in the bond market.
The U.S. stock market is drifting near its record levels following reactions to profit reports from Macy’s, Marvell Technologies and other companies. The S&P 500 added 0.4% Wednesday and climbed within 0.5% of its all-time high set in late October. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 428 points, and the Nasdaq composite rose 0.2%. Treasury yields eased in the bond market following some mixed reports on the U.S. economy. One suggested hiring was much weaker in November than economists expected, while a second said growth for U.S. services businesses was better than expected.
The Enhanced Games is going public in two ways — with a new listing on the Nadsaq stock exchange and also by offering a direct-to-consumer business focused on performance products.
