All three major indexes posted weekly gains, as investors took comfort from data pointing to robust economic activity in the world's biggest economy.
Wall Street closed higher on Friday, with all three major indexes posting weekly gains, as investors took comfort from data pointing to robust economic activity in the world's biggest economy.
A measure of business activity raced to a 31-month high in November, boosted by hopes for lower interest rates and more business-friendly policies from President-elect Donald Trump's administration next year.
The domestically focused small-cap Russell 2000 index (.RUT) outperformed large-cap indexes and rose 1.8%. The index advanced 4.3% for the week, closing at its highest in more than a week.
Meanwhile, Alphabet (GOOGL.O) fell 1.7% following Thursday's 4% drop, as the U.S. Department of Justice argued to a judge the company was monopolizing online search.
AI bellwether Nvidia (NVDA.O) also slipped 3.2% in choppy trading following its quarterly forecast on Wednesday.
An index tracking S&P 500 value stocks (.IVX) rose 0.78% as investors rotated out of their growth peers (.IGX).
"I’ve been looking for this leadership change to go from technology to everything else. I think we may be in the midst of that shift. Small caps are acting much better, values are acting better," said Mark Hackett, Chief of Investment Research at Nationwide.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI) rose 426.16 points, or 0.97%, to 44,296.51, the S&P 500 (.SPX) gained 20.63 points, or 0.35%, to 5,969.34 and the Nasdaq Composite (.IXIC) gained 31.23 points, or 0.16%, to 19,003.65.
Industrial (.SPLRCI) stocks led the S&P, rising 1.36%, while consumer discretionary (.SPLRCL) was the biggest sectoral decliner, falling 0.69%.
For the week, the S&P 500 gained 1.68%, the Nasdaq rose 1.73%, and the Dow climbed 1.96%.
Expectations on the Federal Reserve's policy move in December have recently swayed between a pause and a cut, as investors weighed the likely impact of Trump's plans on price pressures.
There is a 59.6% probability the central bank will lower borrowing costs by 25 basis points, as per the CME Group's FedWatch Tool.
Geopolitics were top of mind this week as investors monitored a missile exchange between Ukraine and Russia, after Moscow lowered its threshold for a nuclear retaliation. The markets are also awaiting Trump's Treasury Secretary pick.
"The fact that we’ve been calm on a nice, steady stair step pattern higher is very encouraging and reflective of the fact that investors aren’t acting with the emotion that they could be given the amount of uncertainties we’ve faced," Hackett said.
In company news, Gap Inc (GAP.N) jumped 12.8% after the Old Navy parent raised its annual sales forecast and said the holiday season was off to a "strong start".
Intuit (INTU.O) fell 5.7% after the TurboTax parent projected second-quarter revenue and profit below Wall Street estimates on Thursday (22 November).
Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 3.2-to-1 ratio on the NYSE where there were 532 new highs and 41 new lows.
On the Nasdaq, 3,076 stocks rose and 1,271 fell as advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 2.42-to-1 ratio.
The S&P 500 posted 83 new 52-week highs and one new low while the Nasdaq Composite recorded 179 new highs and 85 new lows.
Volume on U.S. exchanges was 13.49 billion shares, compared with the 14.65 billion average for the full session over the last 20 trading days.
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One person was killed and nearly a dozen hurt in a fresh attack on Riyadh's international airport on Sunday, Saudi authorities reported, a day after a strike claimed by Yemen's Houthis killed 13 people and wounded more than 300.
The Saudi-led coalition in Yemen said late Monday that it intercepted and destroyed two ballistic missiles launched by the Houthi group toward Khamis Mushait in southwestern Saudi Arabia.
The Houthi movement has escalated their attacks on Saudi Arabia, targeting the airport in Riyadh and other cities, killing more than a dozen people.
The Kremlin on Monday rejected a 60-day ceasefire idea proposed by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to allow his country to hold presidential elections, saying it wanted an overall peace deal instead.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says Russia hit at least six energy targets in deadly strikes across Ukraine, showing Moscow is unwilling to accept the energy ceasefire announced by U.S. President Donald Trump.
Asian stocks plunged to their lowest level in more than two months on Tuesday as advances by Chinese chipmakers rattled investor confidence in the artificial intelligence boom, despite soaring global semiconductor sales.
Artificial intelligence investment is helping sustain global growth at around 3 per cent, with Asia poised to reap major benefits. But soaring energy costs, unequal investment and growing pressure on young workers threaten to leave some economies behind.
Uzbekistan and Russia have a portfolio of more than 200 joint projects worth almost $6 billion, as the two countries continue to expand regional and business ties. The projects were discussed during the third meeting of the Council of Regions of Russia and Uzbekistan, held in Fergana, Uzbekistan.
In the marshlands of Malluba in southern Azerbaijan, Kamil Mammadov follows a routine that has been passed down through generations. His family has worked with medicinal leeches for centuries, harvesting and breeding a species known as Hirudo orientalis, or the Caucasian medicinal leech.
Baku is hosting the second Azerbaijan International Investment Forum (AIIF 2026) and it’s attracting more interest this year, Azerbaijan’s Deputy Prime Minister told AnewZ. “The agenda is very impressive. More guests, more interest,” he said.
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