Major United States benchmark averages closed little changed on Friday, with the S&P 500 briefly touching a fresh record high, rounding out a strong week for U.S. equities amid thin trading conditions as investors returned from the Christmas holiday.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 20.2 points or 0.04% to 48,711.0. The S&P 500 edged down 2.1 points or 0.03% to finish at 6,929.9, after rising as much as 0.2% earlier in the session to an intraday peak of 6,945.8. The Nasdaq Composite slipped 20.2 points or 0.1% to close at 23,593.1.
Despite the subdued finish, all three major indices posted solid gains for the week. The S&P 500 advanced 1.4%, marking its fourth weekly rise in the past five weeks, while the Dow and Nasdaq each gained more than 1% over the same period.
Investors are entering a historically strong seasonal window for equities, often referred to as the “Santa Claus rally”.
The period, which spans the final five trading days of the year and the first two sessions of the new year, has historically delivered gains for U.S. stocks.
Among individual stocks, Nvidia climbed 1% after the artificial intelligence chipmaker agreed to license chip technology from start-up Groq and hire its chief executive.
Target shares jumped 3.1% after the Financial Times reported that the retailer is facing activist pressure from hedge fund Toms Capital Investment Management, which has built a significant stake in the company.
Shares of U.S.-listed precious metals miners also moved higher, tracking strength in bullion prices. First Majestic, Coeur Mining and Endeavour Silver rose between 1.2% and 3.0% after silver and gold prices touched fresh record highs.
On the bond markets, 10-year and 2-year yields were down 0.1% and 0.8% to 4.132% and 3.481%, respectively.
