Wall Street Slides After Holiday Break, but Positive Retail and Auto Stocks Offer Support
Stocks on Wall Street edged lower on Thursday as U.S. markets resumed trading after the Christmas holiday, with the major indices showing mixed movements in a quiet session.
The S&P 500 slipped 0.1%, ending a three-day winning streak. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 23 points, or 0.1%, as of 11:14 a.m. Eastern time, while the Nasdaq Composite saw a marginal decline of less than 0.1%.
Big Tech stocks were among the biggest drags on the market. Semiconductor giant Nvidia, a major player in the technology sector, lost 0.5%. Meta Platforms and Amazon both saw declines of 0.8% and 0.7%, respectively. Netflix saw the largest drop among S&P 500 stocks, falling 1.6%.
However, health care stocks provided some optimism. CVS Health rose 2.7%, while Walgreens Boots Alliance climbed 2.6%. Several major retailers also posted gains, with Target rising 2.3%, Best Buy up 1.7%, and Dollar Tree advancing 1.7%.
In the automotive sector, Honda and Nissan saw strong gains, with U.S.-listed shares rising 3.7% and 15.7%, respectively. The Japanese automakers revealed that they are in talks about a potential merger.
The latest data from the U.S. Department of Labor showed that applications for unemployment benefits held steady last week, but continuing claims rose to the highest level in three years. This suggests a slight uptick in jobless claims, although the labor market remains relatively stable.
In the bond market, Treasury yields rose slightly, with the yield on the 10-year Treasury climbing to 4.61%, up from 4.59% late Tuesday.
With major European markets closed for the day, along with markets in Hong Kong, Australia, New Zealand, and Indonesia, trading volumes were expected to remain low. This is typical for the final week of the year, as markets prepare for a quiet holiday period.
Despite subdued trading, U.S. markets have historically shown strength at the year’s end, with the last five trading days of the year and the first two of the new year delivering an average gain of 1.3% since 1950.
So far in 2024, the U.S. stock market has seen impressive gains, with the S&P 500 up approximately 26% and remaining near its most recent all-time high set earlier this month—marking the 57th record high of the year.
Looking ahead, Wall Street will be focusing on several economic reports next week, including updates on pending home sales, construction spending, and manufacturing activity, which could provide fresh insights into the U.S. economy as the year wraps up.
