Live coverage has ended. The full story is below.
This article will be updated throughout the day, so check back often for more daily updates.
The markets are moving decidedly higher to cap off the week as they welcomed jobs data that was neither too hot nor too cold. All three of the major stock market averages are advancing, including a fractional gain in the Nasdaq Composite. Google parent company Alphabet (Nasdaq: GOOGL | GOOGL Price Prediction) is tacking on 1%, buoying the tech sector and bringing the stock closer to the $4 trillion market cap level. The markets are also watching and waiting for a Supreme Court decision today on President Trump’s tariff run.
On the economic front, U.S. job growth came to a crawl in December, with businesses holding back on hiring due to import tariffs and bigger investments in AI. For example, Bloomberg reports that Elon Musk’s xAI doled out $7.8 billion through Q1-Q3 2025. Nevertheless, the unemployment rate fell to 4.4%, giving Fed policymakers more to consider at their upcoming FOMC meeting later this month. The Labor Department revealed that non-farm payrolls rose by 50,000 jobs last month, after a revised increase of 56,000 in November.
Here’s a look at where things stand as of morning trading:
Dow Jones Industrial Average: 49,414.94 Up 148.83 (+0.28%)
Nasdaq Composite: 23,482.78 Up 2.7 (+0.03)
S&P 500: 6,935.64 Up 13.18 (+0.21%)
Market Movers
Bernstein analysts remain bullish on Broadcom (Nasdaq: AVGO) stock, maintaining an “outperform” rating with a $475 price target, assuring investors that worries about the company’s ASIC share in the AI market are “hugely overblown.” Broadcom stock is up slightly.
Meta Platforms (Nasdaq: META) has inked a nuclear power partnership with Oklo (Nasdaq: OKLO) on nuclear energy to meet escalating power demands from its data center, sending OKLO shares 18% higher. Meta is also teaming up with Vistra (NYSE: VST) and TerraPower for nuclear-related agreements. VST stock is soaring by 15% today.
Contact [email protected] for any questions or corrections.