Stocks were mixed during the first trading week of December. Technology stocks led, while the widely followed Dow Jones Industrial Average struggled.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index picked up 3.34 percent while the Dow Industrials lost 0.60 percent. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index added 0.96 percent. The MSCI EAFE Index, which tracks developed overseas stock markets, gained 1.46 percent.1,2
Tech Takes Charge
The S&P and Nasdaq rallied to start the week, closing at record highs Monday and Tuesday. The Dow fell on both days. During a conference speech, Fed governor Christopher Waller said he supports a rate adjustment in December for now, which seemed to add momentum to the S&P’s and Nasdaq’s gains.3,4
Tech shares continued to propel stock gains midweek on the strength of a few better-than-expected Q3 reports.5
On Friday, the S&P and Nasdaq hit new record highs following the November jobs report. Both notched their third consecutive winning week. By contrast, the Dow was down four of the five trading days, ending the week in the red after two back-to-back weekly gains.6,7,8
Jobs Rebound
After two hurricanes and an aircraft maker strike weighed on the labor market in October, the November jobs report released Friday gave investors what they were looking for: confirmation that the October update was an anomaly.
While November payrolls topped expectations, investors believed the hotter-than-expected report would not influence the Fed’s upcoming decision regarding short-term interest rates. The Fed’s scheduled two-day meeting ends on December 18.9
Footnotes and Sources
- The Wall Street Journal, December 6, 2024
- Investing.com, December 6, 2024
- CNBC.com, December 2, 2024
- MarketWatch.com, December 3, 2024
- CNBC.com, December 4, 2024
- MarketWatch.com, December 5, 2024
- MarketWatch.com, December 6, 2024
- The Wall Street Journal, December 6, 2024
- The Wall Street Journal, December 6, 2024
