NEW YORK: The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq gained on Monday, with the benchmark index briefly hitting an all-time high boosted by technology stocks, while investor focus remained on a slew of economic data this week.
The week’s centerpiece would be the November nonfarm payrolls report due on Friday, a key metric in also gauging the state of the labor market.
Jay Woods, chief global strategist at Freedom Capital Markets, noted that an in-line reading should keep the Federal Reserve on track to cut interest rates by 25-basis-points when it meets later this month.
“Last week, (the Fed) shook off (inflation) numbers that were in line with analyst expectations, so that no landing is in play because they’re not getting to the 2% goal on inflation, yet unemployment remains historically low.”
An October jobs opening reading is slated to be released on Tuesday, while November private payrolls data is due on Wednesday.
On the day, data from the Institute for Supply Management (ISM) showed US manufacturing activity improved in November, while the final reading of the S&P manufacturing survey was revised upwards to 49.7, compared to a previous reading of 48.8.
At 11:30 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 102.81 points, or 0.23%, to 44,807.84, the S&P 500 gained 11.19 points, or 0.19%, to 6,043.57 and the Nasdaq Composite gained 162.49 points, or 0.85%, to 19,380.43.
Most megacap and growth stocks were higher with Tesla leading gains, up 2.2%, after Stifel raised its target price on the stock to $411 from $287.
Although eight of the 11 major S&P sectors were trading lower, an about 1% advance each in information technology , consumer discretionary and communication services kept the benchmark index in the green.
The S&P 500 and the blue-chip Dow recorded their best month in a year, capping off a stellar November for US equities.
Republican candidate Donald Trump recapturing the White House along with his party sweeping both houses of Congress has been the latest tailwind for equities.
Analysts expect Trump’s policies on tax cuts, tariffs and deregulation could spur greater corporate performance. However, concerns persisted that his policies could bump up inflation and cause the Fed to slow its rate easing cycle.
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