Associated Press/Richard Drew
- US stocks climbed Monday, coming off Friday’s rally and an upbeat jobs report.
- In December, wages increased less than expected and nonfarm payrolls were slightly higher than expected.
- The consumer price index report for December comes out Thursday.
US stocks climbed Monday as the investors remained optimistic about a soft landing after Friday’s monthly jobs report.
In December, payrolls expanded more than expected while wage growth grew less than expected, signaling the Federal Reserve’s policy tightening may be having the intended effect of slowing the economy just enough to cool inflation and avoid a recession.
On Thursday, the consumer price index report is due, providing another key indicator on the direction of inflation.
Here’s where US indexes stood as the market opened 9:30 a.m. on Monday:
- S&P 500: 3,920.10, up 0.64%
- Dow Jones Industrial Average: 33,796.38, up 0.49% (165.77 points)
- Nasdaq Composite: 10,680.30, up 1.05%
But analysts have cautioned that markets will see choppiness in the near-term as the central bank continues to respond to economic data.
“The market’s day-to-day swings last week may symbolize a larger, longer-term tug-of-war that could play out this year,” according to Chris Larkin, managing director of trading at E-Trade from Morgan Stanley. “In addition to the probability of interest rates remaining high and a possible economic slowdown, any bullishness triggered by slowing inflation may be offset by stocks still-high valuations and overly optimistic earnings expectations.”
Here’s what else is going on:
- Elon Musk could take SpaceX’s Starlink public in 2023, Chamath Palihapitiya said.
- Experts say that Russia faces revolution and collapse within 10 years as sanctions undermine its economy.
- UBS warns not to pile into stocks just yet, since the Fed won’t ease from tightening that soon.
- Embattled crypto group DCG is reportedly under investigation over money transfers at lending arm Genesis.
- Former FTX US boss Brett Harrison said he’ll “share in time” what he knows about the collapsed exchange.
In commodities, bonds, and crypto:
- Oil prices climbed, with West Texas Intermediate up 2.94% to $75.94 a barrel. Brent crude, the international benchmark, rose 2.67% to $80.70 a barrel
- Gold moved higher 0.63% to $1,881.00 per ounce
- The 10-year yield ticked up 0.5 basis point to 3.576%
- Bitcoin climbed 1.67% to $17,241.87
