US stocks drifted higher to more records on a holiday-shortened day of trading. The S&P 500 rose 0.3%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 0.6%, and the Nasdaq composite edged up 0.2%. Markets closed early for Christmas Eve and will remain closed for Christmas Thursday. The S&P 500 is up more than 17% this year, driven by optimism about artificial intelligence and deregulatory policies. Investors' focus is on the U.S. economy's direction and Federal Reserve interest rate policy. Unemployment claims fell last week, indicating a still-healthy labor market. Dynavax Technologies soared after French pharmaceutical company Sanofi said it would buy the vaccine maker.
Stocks fell on Wall Street as the Trump administration stepped up pressure on trading partners to make deals before punishing tariffs imposed by the U.S. take effect. The S&P 500 lost 0.8% Monday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gave back 0.9%, and the Nasdaq composite fell 0.9%. Tesla tumbled as the feud between CEO Elon Musk and President Donald Trump reignited over the weekend. Musk, once a top donor and ally of Trump, said he would form a third political party in protest over the Republican spending bill that passed last week.
Stocks rose on Wall Street as calm returned to the market a day after its worst drop in nearly two years. The S&P 500 rose 1% Tuesday to break a brutal three-day losing streak. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 0.8%, and the Nasdaq composite added 1%. Strong profit reports from Uber and other companies helped support the market. Stocks of all kinds climbed in a mirror opposite of the day before, when the unraveling of some popular trades and worries about the U.S. economy wracked markets. Treasury yields climbed to claw back some of their sharp drops since April.
