Stocks climbed on Monday as tech rallied and investors considered the path of interest rates next year after the Fed hinted they would stay higher for longer.
The S&P 500 (^GSPC) gained 0.7%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq (^IXIC) rose almost 1%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) erased earlier losses to edge almost 0.2% higher.
Semiconductor stocks gained, as shares of chipmakers Nvidia (NVDA) and Broadcom (AVGO) rose more than 3% and 5%, respectively.
Robust gains from social media platform Meta (META) and EV giant Tesla (TSLA) also helped lead the broader market higher.
Wall Street is coming off an upbeat Friday but a downbeat — and volatile — week, with all three major averages up above 1% Friday but down around 2% for the week. The Fed played the part of the Grinch, signaling that it will step back its pace of cutting next year, leading stocks to one of the worst days of the year on Wednesday.
On Friday, however, the Fed’s preferred inflation gauge, the Personal Consumption Expenditures index, showed further cooling on the inflation front — if still some stickiness. Still, the lone dissenter of the Fed’s move to cut last week said she voted against cutting rates because “there is more work to do on inflation.”
For now, according to the CME FedWatch tool, investors are betting on the Fed holding rates steady next month. For its subsequent meeting in March, bets are about 50-50 on a cut vs. a hold.
But overall, this week’s light schedule will provide a bit of a breather and a chance for Wall Street to digest and reflect heading into 2025. Markets will close at 1 p.m. ET on Tuesday, followed by Wednesday’s Christmas holiday.
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Mon, December 23, 2024 at 9:01 PM UTC
Nasdaq, S&P 500 jump as tech leads gains
The Nasdaq (^IXIC) led the market higher on Monday as tech stocks gained during a shortened trading week. The tech-heavy index climbed almost 1% while the S&P 500 (^GSPC) rose 0.7%.
Semiconductor stocks climbed, with shares of AI chip heavyweight Nvidia (NVDA) gain more than 3% while Broadcom (AVGO) and Taiwan Semiconductor (TSM) rallied.
Gains in shares of social media platform Meta (META) and EV giant Tesla (TSLA) also helped lift the Nasdaq and S&P 500.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) spent most of the session in red territory but managed to close up nearly 0.2%.
The 10-year Treasury (^TNX) climbed as much as 7 basis points to 4.6% during the session.
In economic data, Consumer Confidence in December registered the biggest month-over-month decline since November of 2020.
The stock market will close at 1 p.m. ET on Tuesday, followed by Wednesday’s Christmas holiday.
Mon, December 23, 2024 at 8:26 PM UTC
Walmart shares drag on Dow
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) struggled to lift above the flatline on Monday, weighed by shares of Walmart (WMT).
The retail giant fell as much as 3% during the session after the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) sued the company along with Branch Messenger, claiming they illegally forced “delivery drivers to use costly deposit accounts” to get paid.
Other Dow laggards on Monday included software giant Microsoft (MSFT) and sport apparel maker Nike (NKE).
Mon, December 23, 2024 at 7:30 PM UTC
Rumble shares gain as much as 100% on Tether investment
Shares of video-sharing platform Rumble (RUM) extended session gains to as much as 100% Monday afternoon following a $775 million investment from crypto firm Tether (USDT-USD).
“Tether’s investment in Rumble reflects our shared values of decentralization, independence, transparency, and the fundamental right to free expression,” Paolo Ardoino, CEO of Tether, said on Friday when the strategic partnership was announced.
Rumble shares opened more than 40% higher on Monday. By afternoon trading the stock had soared to its highest level since 2022.
Mon, December 23, 2024 at 7:01 PM UTC
The man behind the effort to create a DOGE ‘safe harbor’ for Capitol Hill Democrats
Rep. Aaron Bean is charged with making that happen.
The Florida Republican is a Trump/Musk ally and co-founder of the House’s DOGE caucus, which gathered for its first meeting last week to begin wooing curious Democrats as Congress wrapped up its business for the year.
“They’re still kind of fearful, they’re feeling out DOGE,” Bean said of the other side of the aisle in a recent interview.
Nordstrom (JWN) is returning to its private roots after years of earnings struggles and investor indifference.
The founding Nordstrom family, who owned a roughly 33% stake, teamed up with retail investor El Puerto de Liverpool, owner of a 10% stake, to take the company private. El Puerto is a real estate and department store conglomerate that has boutiques with known names like Gap, Banana Republic, and Williams Sonoma, among others, in addition to department stores and other format retailers.
Both will acquire all outstanding shares in an all-cash deal valued at about $6.25 billion.
Tech (XLK) and Communication (XLC) stocks rose modestly on Monday while the rest of the S&P 500 sectors struggled to gain much traction.
Chip giant Nvidia (NVDA) increased 2%, while social media platform Meta (META) also gained more than 2%.
The S&P 500 (^GSPC) crossed into green territory to rise 0.2% and the tech-heavy Nasdaq (^IXIC) increased 0.5% by 12:30 p.m. ET.
Mon, December 23, 2024 at 4:45 PM UTC
Bitcoin extends losses to hover near $93,000
Bitcoin (BTC-USD) extended losses on Monday, dropping more than 2.5% over the past 24 hours to touch $93,000 per token.
The world’s largest cryptocurrency has been on a downward trend since last week when Fed Chair Jerome Powell signaled central bank policymakers will likely scale back rate cuts next year.
Bitcoin has fallen more than 10% from its all-time record highs north of $108,000 touched last Tuesday. The token is still up more than 35% since the presidential election on Nov. 5.
Mon, December 23, 2024 at 4:03 PM UTC
Nvidia, Broadcom, AMD lead chip sector higher
Semiconductor stocks rose on Monday, with shares of AI chip heavyweight Nvidia (NVDA) gaining more than 1% while Broadcom (AVGO) and Taiwan Semiconductor (TSM) also edged higher.
AMD (AMD) gained more than 5% after Rosenblatt Securities named the chipmaker a top pick for 2025.
Meanwhile, Qualcomm (QCOM) shares gained after the company won a legal battle on Friday over a breach of contract dispute with Arm (ARM).
Shares of the UK-based chip designer fell more than 5% during the session.
Mon, December 23, 2024 at 3:30 PM UTC
Consumer expectations index sees largest monthly decline since November 2020
Consumer Confidence fell short of expectations in December, largely due to how Americans are viewing the economic outlook in the year ahead.
The Expectations Index, which includes the short-term outlook for income, business, and labor market conditions, sank 12.6 points to 81.1 in December, its largest month-over-month decline since November 2020.
Overall, the Consumer Confidence index reading for December was 104.7, below the 113.2 expected by economists surveyed by Bloomberg.
“Consumer views of current labor market conditions continued to improve, consistent with recent jobs and unemployment data, but their assessment of business conditions weakened,” Conference Board chief economist Dana Peterson said in the release. “Compared to last month, consumers in December were substantially less optimistic about future business conditions and incomes. Moreover, pessimism about future employment prospects returned after cautious optimism prevailed in October and November.”
In December, 21.3% of respondents anticipated fewer jobs to be available in the next six months, up from 17.9% the month prior. Meanwhile, expectations for income decreases and worse business conditions in the next six months also moved higher.
Markets, which have recently been in a slump amid rising concerns about the uncertainty surrounding policies from the Trump administration and the Federal Reserve in 2025, moved lower after the release.
All three major indexes quickly hit their lows of the session before beginning to pare losses.
Mon, December 23, 2024 at 3:04 PM UTC
Consumer Confidence expectations fell in December to 104.7, versus estimates for 113.2.
The reading came in below all 47 estimates, which ranged from 109.3 to 116.00 across 47 estimates, according to Bloomberg data.
Mon, December 23, 2024 at 2:30 PM UTC
Stock mixed to kick off shortened holiday week
Stocks opened mixed to kick off a short trading week as investors assess how the Federal Reserve will handle its interest rate policy next year.
The S&P 500 (^GSPC) rose slightly, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq (^IXIC) gained 0.1%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) fell about 0.4%.
Consumer Discretionary stocks (XLY) gained, while Financials (XLF) and Real Estate (XLRE) lagged in early trading.
Individual movers included AI heavyweight Nvidia (NVDA) and Tesla (TSLA), up more than 1% and 2%, respectively.
Wall Street is coming off a volatile week after Fed Chair Jerome Powell hinted the central bank will scale back its pace of interest rate cuts next year.
