Wall Street Today | S&P 500 Closes Just Shy of Record, Up 24% in 2023

Moomoo Recap US wrote a column · Dec 30, 2023 05:44

Wall Street Today | S&P 500 Closes Just Shy of Record, Up 24% in 2023

RECAP

S&P 500 Closes the Year Up 24%

US stocks slightly pulled back on the last trading day of 2023, trimming the annual gains that were fueled by the meteoric rise of the so-called Magnificent Seven and semiconductors. The 24% rally this year has been driven by the frenzy over artificial intelligence and optimism that the technology could cut costs and boost productivity across Corporate America.

The $S&P 500 Index (.SPX.US)$ closed out the year at 4,769.83, just shy of the record close of 4,796.56 reached in early 2022, before the US Federal Reserve embarked on the fastest pace of interest rate increases in decades. This year's gains were also buoyed by bets that policymakers would start cutting borrowing costs in early 2024.

The $Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI.US)$ settled little changed Friday after climbing to an all-time high of 37,778.85. The $Nasdaq Composite Index (.IXIC.US)$ slipped 0.6% to 15,011.35, paring this year's surge to 43.4%, its biggest annual rally since 2020.

MACRO

Chicago PMI Back in Contraction Territory

Chicago Business Barometer fell back into contraction territory, missing estimates. The regional manufacturing gauge, also known as Chicago PMI, slipped 8.9 index points to 46.9 in December, below the 50-reading expected by economists.

The regional Federal Reserve manufacturing surveys for December released so far suggest modest weakening in the outlook for manufacturing, MarketWatch quoted economists as saying. The December national manufacturing data from Institute of Supply Management is expected next Wednesday. Signs of economic slowdown may strengthen the case for Fed rate cuts in the next few months.

SECTORS

Oil's Demand Woes

Oil futures slipped 0.4% on the final trading day of 2023 Friday, ending the year with its first annual decline since 2020. Demand concerns have overshadowed potential supply disruptions and efforts by Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its partners to curb output.

COMPANIES

Alphabet Agrees to Settle Privacy Lawsuit

$Alphabet-A (GOOGL.US)$ shares slipped, tracking losses on Nasdaq, after Reuters reported that Google agreed to settle a $5 billion lawsuit alleging that the company secretly tracked the internet use of millions of people who thought they were browsing the internet through Chrome privately.

Grifols Sells Stake in Shanghai RAAS

$Grifols (GRFS.US)$ shares rose 11% after the company said it is selling about 20% of its equity stake in Shanghai RAAS, or SRAAS, to household appliances maker Haier Group for 12.5 billion yuan in cash. Grifols said proceeds from the transaction will be used to pay down the company's debt. The Spanish pharmaceutical group said the deal will lead to the combination of its plasma and diagnostics sector with Haier's healthcare services in China.

XPeng Expands Driver Assistance System

$XPeng (XPEV.US)$ shares rose in US trading after Chinese electric vehicle maker said it expanded its XNGP Advanced Driver Assistance System in 27 more cities in China, taking the total to 52 cities in the Asian country. By early 2024, XNGP will be available in 200 cities across the country, as the company pushes for mass adoption of autonomous driving.

Crypto Stocks Fall

$Bitdeer Technologies (BTDR.US)$, $IREN Ltd (IREN.US)$, $Hut 8 (HUT.US)$ and other crypto-mining stocks tumbled as much as 30%+ Friday as bitcoin prices fell and stocks in the sector gave back much of big gains that they had scored earlier this week.

Source: Bloomberg, Dow Jones, CNBC, Reuters

Disclaimer: Moomoo Technologies Inc. is providing this content for information and educational use only. Read more