Wall Street’s major benchmarks ended Tuesday’s session (Wednesday AEDT) in a mixed fashion, with gains in the technology-heavy Nasdaq offset by declines in the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average, as weakness in healthcare and energy stocks weighed on broader sentiment.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 302.3 points, or 0.6%, to 48,114.3, while the S&P 500 declined 16.3 points, or 0.2%, to 6,800.3, marking its third consecutive session of losses.
In contrast, the Nasdaq Composite added 54.1 points, or 0.2%, to finish at 23,111.5.
Investors continued to assess delayed economic data releases for clues on the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy trajectory heading into next year.
The closely watched United States Labor Department report showed nonfarm payrolls increased by 64,000 jobs in November, following a decline in October attributed to government spending cuts. However, the unemployment rate rose to 4.6%.
Separately, data released on Tuesday showed U.S. retail sales were flat in October, slightly below market expectations for a 0.1% increase.
Energy stocks were among the weakest performers after U.S. crude oil prices slid below US$55 a barrel, touching their lowest level since early 2021.
Shares of Exxon Mobil and Chevron fell about 2.6% and 2%, respectively, while ConocoPhillips shed 3.8%.
Market expectations for near-term monetary easing were largely unchanged. The CME FedWatch Tool indicated a 24.4% chance of a Federal Reserve rate cut next month, the same level as the previous session, suggesting the latest labour market data did little to shift policy expectations.
Healthcare stocks also came under pressure. Pfizer shares fell 3.4% after the drugmaker warned of a challenging 2026, citing weaker sales of COVID-19 products and tighter margins.
Elsewhere, B. Riley shares jumped 53.8% after the investment bank reported a second-quarter profit, reversing a year-ago loss, in a long-delayed quarterly filing.
Separately, a Reuters report said Nasdaq had submitted paperwork to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to introduce round-the-clock stock trading, following similar announcements earlier this year by the New York Stock Exchange and Cboe Global Markets.
The mixed performance extended a weak start to the week for U.S. equities. Monday’s session had been weighed down by losses in major artificial intelligence-related stocks, including Broadcom, Oracle and Microsoft, as investors continued to take profits from high-flying AI names and rotate into other sectors such as healthcare and utilities.
On the bond markets, U.S. Treasury yields edged lower, with the 10-year yield easing to 4.147% and the 2-year yield falling to 3.487%.
