NEW YORK: Wall Street stocks were modestly higher early Tuesday in a holiday-shortened session amid hopes for a year-end “Santa Claus rally.”
The term marks a seven-day stretch that encompasses the final five trading days of one year and the first two days of the next, an historically robust period for equities.
Traders were hopeful about gains this holiday season, although a jump in US Treasury yields loomed as a challenge.
About five minutes into trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up a hair at 42,916.03.
The broad-based S&P 500 gained 0.2 percent to 5,987.91, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index gained 0.4 percent to 19,847.55.
US stocks mostly fall as Treasury yields climb
Among individual companies, American Airlines fell 2.1 percent after it experienced about a one-hour ground stop early Tuesday on US flights due to a technical issue. However, the Christmas Eve travel snag has been resolved.
United States Steel dipped 0.2 percent after a government panel did not reach consensus on whether the company’s $14.9 billion proposed acquisition by Japan’s Nippon harms national security, setting the stage for a decision on the deal by President Joe Biden.
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