Major U.S. benchmark averages finished mixed on Friday, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite reaching record highs amid stronger-than-expected labour market data for November.
On Friday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average edged down by 123.2 points, or 0.3%, to 44,642.5, the S&P 500 rose by 15.2 points or 0.3%, closing at 6,090.3, while the Nasdaq climbed 159.5 points or 0.8% to 19,859.8, buoyed by robust performances from Tesla, Meta Platforms, and Amazon.
Over the week, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq recorded gains of 1% and 3.3%, respectively, marking their third consecutive weekly increase. The Dow, however, declined by 0.6% during the same period.
Friday's economic report showed U.S. nonfarm payrolls rising by 227,000 in November, surpassing the 200,000 forecast by economists. This marked a significant recovery from October’s revised increase of 36,000.
The unemployment rate, inched up to 4.2%, in line with market expectations.
The moderate improvement in labour market data strengthened investor confidence in a potential interest rate cut at the Federal Reserve's upcoming meeting. According to the CME Group’s FedWatch Tool, the probability of a rate cut now stands at 85.1%.
Bond yields eased, reflecting market anticipation of the Fed's next move, with 10-year and 2-year Treasury yields at 4.155% and 4.106%, respectively.