Stock market today: Dow jumps 426 points as stocks end the week higher amid risk-on rally
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- US stocks surged on Friday with the Dow Jones rising 426 points amid risk-on trade momentum.
- Bitcoin neared $100,000, driving speculative asset interest alongside stock market gains.
- Nvidia's earnings and a low-volatility week contributed to the positive market outlook.
US stocks jumped on Friday, with the Dow Jones surging 426 points to a record close as investors' risk-on trade gained steam.
All three major averages were up about 2% for the week, rebounding from last week's decline.
The stock market surge came amid an ongoing risk-on frenzy for speculative assets, namely bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. The price of bitcoin is on the verge of cracking the $100,000 milestone, hitting a record high of $99,772 on Friday.
With Nvidia's third-quarter earnings results out and a low-volatility week ahead with the Thanksgiving holiday, stocks are gravitating higher.
Here's where US indexes stood at the 4:00 p.m. closing bell on Friday:
- S&P 500: 5,969.34, up 0.35%
- Dow Jones Industrial Average: 44,296.39, up 0.97% (+426.16 points)
- Nasdaq composite: 19,003.65, up 0.16%
Fundstrat's Tom Lee called Nvidia's earnings release a "clearing event" for the stock market. Investors now have the opportunity to focus on other factors, like the Fed cutting interest rates and the incoming business-friendly Trump administration.
Lee said in a Friday note that there are "general 'animal spirits' given Republican White House and Senate" in January.
That should be supportive for further gains in the stock market, according to Lee.
With Nvidia the last remaining high-profile firm to report results earlier this week, investors can now assess the big takeaways from earnings season.
With 96% of S&P 500 companies having reported earnings, 77% beat profit estimates by a median of 6%, while 59% beat revenue estimates by a median of 4%, according to data from Fundstrat.
Here's what else happened today:
- These 6 stocks will benefit from the next wave of AI developments, according to BofA.
- CHART: Nvidia's revenue has exploded to just over $35 billion in the third quarter.
- The Fed should sell its gold reserves and buy bitcoin, Sen. Cynthia Lummis said.
- Here's why Michael Saylor expects bitcoin to hit $13 million by 2045.
- The odds of a pause in Fed interest rate cuts next month is rising.
In commodities, bonds, and crypto:
- West Texas Intermediate crude oil jumped 1.50% to $71.15 a barrel. Brent crude, the international benchmark, was higher by 1.06% to $75.02 a barrel.
- Gold increased 1.28% to $2,708.90 an ounce.
- The 10-year Treasury yield was flat at 4.42%.
- Bitcoin increased 0.70% to $99,126.