Stock market today: S&P 500, Nasdaq drift near record levels as Dow falls following key jobs data

Communication Services (XLC), Health Care (XLV), and Energy (XLE) led Tuesday’s sector action. Markets traded mixed as traders assessed new jobs data and awaited more Fedspeak.

Oil prices stood out, with WTI crude (CL=F) climbing 3% to trade above $70 a barrel. Brent crude (BZ=F), the international benchmark, also rose to trade just below $74 a barrel.

Industrials (XLI) was the day’s biggest laggard, dragged down by shares of Aflec (AFL), which fell 4% as investors weighed disappointing outlook. Financials (XLF) and Consumer Staples (XLP) also fell.

The US economy is on solid footing right now. Economists at Bank of America expect it to stay that way through next year.

In a research note released to reporters on Monday, BofA’s economics team led by Claudio Irigoyen projected the US economy will grow at an annualized rate of 2.4% in 2025, higher than current forecasts for 2% growth, according to the latest Bloomberg consensus estimates.

This comes despite uncertainties surrounding the economic policies of President-elect Donald Trump, including campaign promises of tariffs on imported goods, tax cuts for corporations, and curbs on immigration, which economists have viewed as inflationary.

Higher rates, coupled with a hawkish tariff policy, would strengthen the US dollar and create spillover effects to global financial conditions, representing “a major shock, not only for the US economy but the rest of the world,” according to BofA.

But there’s one important caveat: The US is best prepared to weather any economic storm that follows Trump’s agenda.

“We like to say that the US imports a lot of stuff, but it doesn’t import recessions,” Aditya Bhave, senior US economist at Bank of America, told Yahoo Finance in a separate press briefing on Monday. “It only exports recessions.”

Read more here.

Job openings rose more than expected in October as investors continue to dissect the pace of the labor market slowdown seen in the back half of 2024 amid questions over how much further the Federal Reserve will slash interest rates over the next year.

New data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics released Wednesday showed 7.74 million jobs were open at the end of October, an increase from 7.37 million in September.

The September figure was revised lower from the 7.44 million open jobs initially reported. Economists surveyed by Bloomberg expected Tuesday’s report to show 7.51 million openings in October.

The Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) also showed 5.31 million hires were made during the month, down from 5.58 million hires made during September. The hiring rate fell to 3.3% from 3.5% in September. Also in Tuesday’s report: The quits rate, a sign of confidence among workers, rose to 2.1% from 1.9% in September.

Read more here.

US stocks opened mostly higher on Tuesday, hovering near all-time highs.

The S&P 500 (^GSPC) and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) each opened close to the flat line, coming off fresh records for the two gauges. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) ticked up about 0.1%.

Investors are bracing for a reading later on JOLTS job openings in October, the first in a wave of key data this week that culminates in Friday’s all-important monthly US payrolls report.

Lots of analysis on the CEO shake-up at Intel (INTC) has been released, but this is not a one-day story.

The path forward for Intel is vitally important for the country — the chip supply chain must be diversified beyond a singular reliance on Taiwan Semiconductor (TSM).

But that path forward for Intel will be brutal, at best.

Here are a couple of good points this morning from Evercore ISI analyst Mark Lipacis:

Below are some of my initial insights on Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger’s departure: