The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite reached unprecedented highs on Friday, propelled by newly released data indicating that more jobs than anticipated were added to the economy in November. The Nasdaq, heavily weighted in technology, surged by 0.8%, closing at 19,859.8, while the S&P 500 gained 0.3%, finishing at 6,090.3.
Conversely, the Dow Jones Industrial Average experienced a decline of 0.3%, ending at 44,642.5. Among sectors, consumer discretionary stocks emerged as the top performers, while energy stocks faced the most significant downturn. Over the week, the Nasdaq witnessed an impressive rise of 3.3%, while the S&P 500 posted a 1% gain.
In contrast, the Dow saw a 0.6% decrease. In the realm of economic statistics, the total nonfarm payrolls in the United States experienced a notable increase of 227,000 last month, as reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The consensus estimate predicted a 220,000 increase based on a survey conducted by Bloomberg.
Additionally, the unemployment rate rose to 4.2% from October's 4.1%, aligning with market expectations. The Federal Reserve is anticipated to reduce interest rates by 25 basis points on December 18; however, policymakers are expected to adopt a more cautious approach in 2025, potentially bypassing any cuts in January, as noted by Oxford Economics. Cleveland Fed President Beth Hammack stated that the Federal Open Market Committee is nearing a point where it would be wise to decelerate the pace of monetary policy easing.
"Moving slowly will allow us to calibrate policy to the appropriately restrictive level over time, given the underlying strength in the economy," Hammack remarked. In consumer sentiment news, it reached its highest point in seven months, while inflation expectations for the coming year soared to their highest level in six months, according to preliminary December results from the University of Michigan's Surveys of Consumers. In the bond market, the US two-year yield decreased by 4.8 basis points to 4.1% on Friday, and the ten-year rate fell by 3.3 basis points to 4.15%. In corporate updates, shares of Lululemon Athletica ($LULU) experienced an impressive climb of nearly 16%, marking the best performance on both the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq.
The athletic apparel and footwear company reported stronger-than-expected fiscal third-quarter results, benefiting from growing momentum in international markets. Ulta Beauty ($ULTA) also made headlines as one of the top gainers on the S&P 500 Friday, rising by 9%. The beauty retailer reported excellent fiscal third-quarter results late Thursday. In contrast, UnitedHealth Group ($UNH) shares dropped by 5.1%, signaling the most substantial decline across both the Dow and S&P 500. Cooper Cos.
($COO) was another notable decliner, positioned as the second-worst performer on the S&P 500 with a 4.4% drop, following a fiscal 2025 outlook that fell short of Wall Street's expectations announced late Thursday. In commodities, West Texas Intermediate crude oil fell by 1.7% to $67.17 per barrel. "Oil prices declined amid concerns over weak demand, which came to the forefront after the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies postponed planned supply increases and extended significant output cuts until the end of 2026," D.A.
Davidson explained in a note to clients. In precious metals, gold saw a slight increase of 0.2%, reaching $2,653.50 per troy ounce, while silver declined by 0.2%, settling at $31.49 per ounce..