Stock Market Update

[BRIEFING.COM] The stock market ended the first full trading week of 2026 on a high note, with the S&P 500 (+0.7%) once again capturing record highs. Broad-based gains saw the Nasdaq Composite (+0.8%) and DJIA (+0.5%) notch similar gains, with the Dow capturing a record closing high of its own. 

Stocks had a somewhat muted opening as investors digested a heavy batch of economic data. The December Employment Situation report (50,000; Briefing.com consensus 55,000) showed slightly weaker-than-expected growth in payrolls, while the unemployment rate dipped to 4.4% from 4.5% and average hourly earnings growth accelerated to 3.8% from 3.6%. The report pushed back the market's expectation of the next rate cut from April to June but painted a solid enough picture of the labor market to quell fears of a downturn in consumer spending and the economy. 

With all recent indicators pointing to a strong 2026 economy, stocks advanced in broad fashion, similar to Monday and Tuesday's sessions. Nine S&P 500 sectors captured gains, with several sector-specific developments acting as catalysts.

In the case of the top-weighted information technology sector (+1.0%), support came from a strong rebound in chipmaker names after yesterday's pullback. The PHLX Semiconductor Index finished 2.7% higher. Sandisk (SNDK 377.41, +42.87, +12.81%) was the sector's top performer after Tom's Hardware reported the company plans a sharp increase in enterprise SSD pricing in early 2026 as AI demand grows. Intel (INTC 45.55, +4.44, +10.80%) also captured a double-digit gain after President Trump touted a great meeting with CEO Lip-Bu Tan yesterday evening. 

The consumer discretionary sector (+1.1%) also had an eventful session, with homebuilder names such as Lennar (LEN 119.25, +9.70, +8.85%) and D.R. Horton (DHI 157.28, +11.38, +7.80%) leading the advance. President Trump ordered Fannie Mae (FNMA 11.01, +0.16, +1.47%) and Freddie Mac (FMCC 10.08, -0.06, -0.59%) to purchase $200 billion in mortgage bonds, reinforcing expectations for increased mortgage-market support. Additionally, the October Housing Starts report (-4.6%) showed single-unit starts up 5.4% month-over-month and at their highest level since July.

The iShares U.S. Home Construction ETF finished 6.3% higher.

Elsewhere in the sector, many retail names such as lululemon athletica (LULU 203.90, -8.27, -3.90%) traded lower today on disappointment that the US Supreme Court did not issue a decision on the legality of President Trump's IEEPA tariffs today, as many hoped it would. The next decision day for the Supreme Court at which a ruling could be announced is next Wednesday. 

Other outperformers include the materials sector (+1.8%), which was supported by a rally in precious metals prices, and the utilities sector (+1.2%), which saw its electric companies boosted after Vistra Corp. (VST 166.40, +15.80, +10.49%) and Meta Platforms (META 653.06, +7.00, +1.08%) entered a power purchase agreement. 

Only the health care sector (-0.6%) and the financials sector (-0.4%), which will see many of its major banking names report earnings next week, finished lower. 

Outside of the S&P 500, the Russell 2000 (+0.8%) and S&P Mid Cap 400 (+0.9%) slightly outperformed their larger-cap counterparts, a trend that has held over the first two weeks of trading this year.

The market is off to a strong start in 2026, with broadening strength driving the major averages to record highs. While next week's inflation data and a pickup in earnings reports will test that momentum, the broader macro backdrop continues to point to an economy supportive of further market growth.

U.S. Treasuries had a mixed finish to the week, with longer tenors showing relative strength while the 2-year note lagged after a December jobs report that was good enough to call the market's rate cut expectations into question. The 2-year note yield settled up five basis points to 3.54% (+6 basis points this week), and the 10-year note yield settled down one basis point to 4.17% (-2 basis points this week). 

• Russell 2000: +5.7% YTD
• S&P Mid Cap 400: +4.7% YTD
• DJIA: +3.0% YTD
• Nasdaq Composite: +1.9% YTD
• S&P 500: +1.8% YTD

Reviewing today's data:

• December Nonfarm Payrolls 50K (Briefing.com consensus 55K); Prior was revised to 56K from 64K, December Nonfarm Private Payrolls 37K (Briefing.com consensus 50K); Prior was revised to 50K from 69K, December Unemployment Rate 4.4% (Briefing.com consensus 4.5%); Prior was revised to 4.5% from 4.6%, December Average Hourly Earnings 0.3% (Briefing.com consensus 0.3%); Prior was revised to 0.2% from 0.1%, December Average Workweek 34.2 (Briefing.com consensus 34.3); Prior 34.3
  • Granted, the employment situation could be better, but the key takeaway is that the low unemployment rate will temper concerns that consumer spending and the economy will slow rapidly due to a weak labor market. It will also likely keep the Fed's next rate cut at bay.
• September Housing Starts 1.306 mln (Briefing.com consensus 1.320 mln); Prior was revised to 1.291 mln from 1.307 mln, September Building Permits 1.415 mln (Briefing.com consensus 1.340 mln); Prior was revised to 1.330 mln from 1.312 mln
• October Housing Starts 1.246 mln (Briefing.com consensus 1.340 mln); Prior 1.306 mln, October Building Permits 1.412 mln (Briefing.com consensus 1.355 mln); Prior 1.415 mln
  • The key takeaway from the report is that the weakness in starts was driven entirely by multi-family units. Single-unit starts were up 5.4% month-over-month and at their highest level since July.
• January Univ. of Michigan Consumer Sentiment - Prelim 54.0 (Briefing.com consensus 53.0); Prior 52.9
  • The key takeaway from the report is that consumer sentiment, while improved a bit, is still guarded due to lingering concerns about high prices and softening labor markets.

[BRIEFING.COM] The major averages continue to chart session highs just before the close, well positioned to capture solid week-to-date gains in the first full trading week of 2026. 

The market navigated several key developments today, including a better-than-feared December Employment Situation Report and discussions between the Trump administration and oil executives in regard to Venezuela.

Next week's action could prove just as eventful as investors look towards the December CPI release on Tuesday (Briefing.com consensus 0.3%) and the November PPI release on Wednesday (Briefing.com consensus 0.2%). 

Additionally, the Supreme Court could rule on the legality of President Trump's IEEPA tariffs next Wednesday.  Many analysts thought that ruling would come through today, as it was also a decision day, but the Supreme Court does not decide which cases they will rule on beforehand.

[BRIEFING.COM] The S&P 500 (+0.8%), Nasdaq Composite (+1.0%), and DJIA (+0.5%) continue to chart new session highs as the market enters the final hour of the session. 

After spending the majority of the session in negative territory, Amazon (AMZN 246.85, +0.56, +0.23%) now holds a modest gain, with The Information reporting that the company is planning on opening a big box retail store. 

Even with today's sluggishness, the stock is a clear standout among the "magnificent seven" names to start the year, rising 6.9% so far.  Alphabet (GOOG 330.65, +4.64, +1.42%) holds the next widest year-to-date gain of 5.5%. 

[BRIEFING.COM] The S&P 500 (+0.76%) is in second place on Friday afternoon, up about 53 points.

Briefly, S&P 500 constituents Builders FirstSource (BLDR 123.96, +12.67, +11.38%), Lam Research (LRCX 218.36, +17.40, +8.66%), and Weyerhaeuser (WY 25.55, +1.56, +6.50%) dot the top of the standings. BLDR and WY rise as investors reacted to reports that President Trump and Commerce Secretary Lutnick met with homebuilders to boost housing affordability and construction, raising optimism for increased building activity and stronger demand for construction materials across the sector, while LRCX gets a boost from sell side target increases.

Meanwhile, lululemon athletica (LULU 201.89, -10.28, -4.85%) is today's worst laggard after Piper Sandler data showed SKUs on sale up roughly 90% yr/yr, reviving investor concerns that rising discounting -- unlike stabilizing promos at peers like Nike (NKE 65.60, +0.34, +0.52%) -- could pressure margins and earnings quality into January.

[BRIEFING.COM] With about two hours to go on the week the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (+0.91%) is in the lead, up about 213 points.

Gold futures settled $40.20 higher (+0.9%) at $4,500.90/oz, extending weekly gains to about +4%, as safe-haven demand stayed elevated amid geopolitical tensions and ongoing central bank buying. Expectations for easier Fed policy and lower real yields have further supported bullion, keeping gold well bid ahead of next week's CPI/PPI data.

Meanwhile, the U.S. Dollar Index is up +0.3% to $99.13.