Dow dips despite brief 45,000 mark as Tesla and small caps surge in a strong start to December
The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite opened December trading with record-breaking performances, building on November’s significant gains, CNBC reports.
The S&P 500 rose 0.24 percent to close at 6,047.15, while the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.97 percent, finishing at 19,403.95. Both indexes achieved new all-time intraday and closing highs.
Meanwhile, the Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 0.29 percent, or 128.65 points, ending the day at 44,782.00. Despite the drop, the Dow briefly crossed the 45,000 threshold during trading, a level it had surpassed several times last week.
Tesla shares advanced 3.5 percent after Roth MKM upgraded the stock to a buy from neutral, citing the positive influence of CEO Elon Musk’s relationship with President-elect Donald Trump.
Super Micro Computer shares soared nearly 29 percent after a special committee investigation concluded there was “no evidence of misconduct” and affirmed that the company’s financial statements were “materially accurate.”
Amazon also posted gains of over 1 percent as Cyber Monday marked the beginning of the holiday shopping season.
November delivered the best monthly performance of 2024 for the Dow and the S&P 500, which rose 7.5 percent and 5.7 percent, respectively.
The postelection rally, spurred by Trump’s victory, drove most of the month’s gains, with both indexes reaching record closing highs during Friday’s shortened session. Small-cap stocks also thrived, benefiting from investor optimism about potential tax cuts.
The Russell 2000 surged more than 10 percent, achieving its largest monthly gain of the year.
Despite the positive momentum, Jay Hatfield, founder and CEO of InfraCap, predicts limited upward movement for the rest of the year.
“I think we’ll grind higher, but not rocket higher,” Hatfield told CNBC, suggesting a year-end target of 6,200 for the S&P 500, just under a 3 percent increase from Friday’s close.
He pointed out that the market has already priced in optimism about the new administration’s pro-business stance, saying, “We need to get details — not just tweets — but details of what the policy is.”
Economic data released on Monday indicated improvements in the US manufacturing sector during November, though the sector remains in contraction.
Investors now await the release of the November US jobs report, scheduled for Friday morning, for further clarity on the economic outlook.
