U.S. stocks closed higher on Tuesday, with the Nasdaq and S&P 500 eking out another record close, as investors awaited more jobs data. However, the Dow underperformed, ending in negative territory.
How Did The Benchmarks Perform?
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) declined 0.2% or 76.47 points, to close at 44,705.53 points.
The S&P 500 rose 0.05% or 2.73 points, to end at 6,049.88 points, to record a new closing high. Communication services and tech stocks were the only gainers on Tuesday.
The Communication Services Select Sector SPDR (XLC) rose 0.8%, while the Technology Select Sector SPDR (XLK) gained 0.4%. Nine of the 11 sectors of the benchmark index ended in negative territory.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq gained 0.4% or 76.96 points to finish at 19,480.91 points, hitting a new all-time closing high. Shares of Apple, Inc. (AAPL) jumped 2% to hit a new 52-week high. Apple has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
The fear-gauge CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) was down 0.30% to 13.30. Decliners outnumbered advancers on the NYSE by a 1.24-to-1 ratio. On the Nasdaq, a 1.66-to-1 ratio favored declining issues. A total of 12.70 billion shares were traded on Tuesday, lower than the last 20-session average of 14.81 billion.
Tech Stocks Extend Rally
Stocks moved mostly sideways on Tuesdays, with tech and communication services stocks extending their gains as investors waited for Friday’s jobs report. Wall Street is still rallying on the post-election euphoria that has seen major indexes hitting multiple all-time highs over the past month.
Investors also digested the U.S. Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) report. The JOLTS report showed that job openings increased at a robust pace in October, while layoffs declined to a 15-month low. Job openings jumped to 7.74 million in October, up from 7.37 million in September and higher than the consensus estimate of 7.48 million.
The data came days ahead of the Federal Reserve’s policy meeting on Dec.17-18. Markets are pricing in a 72% chance of a 25-basis point rate cut in the FOMC meeting, according to CME FedWatch Tool.
On Tuesday, Investors also digested comments from two Fed policymakers, who said that they see inflation on track to meet the Federal Reserve’s 2% target. However, they didn’t suggest if they would be inclined toward another interest rate cut in December.
Investors are now awaiting a batch of economic data scheduled for release later this week, including the October jobs data on Friday.
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