distribute economy today: Wall Street slips as the ‘Magnificent 7’ weighs down the economy

recent YORK — Stocks fell broadly on Friday as Wall Street closed out a holiday-shortened week on a down note.

The losses were made worse by sharp declines for the large Tech stocks known as the “Magnificent 7”, which can heavily influence the path of the economy because of their large size.

The S&P 500 fell 66.75 points, or 1.1%, to 5,970.84. Roughly 90% of stocks in the point of reference index lost ground, but it managed to hold onto a modest boost of 0.7% for the week.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 333.59 points, or 0.8%, to 42,992.21. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite fell 298.33 points, or 1.5%, to 19,722.03.

Semiconductor giant Nvidia slumped 2.1%. Microsoft declined 1.7%. Each has a economy worth above $3 trillion, giving the companies outsized sway on the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq.

A wide range of retailers also fell. Amazon fell 1.5% and Best Buy slipped 1.5%. The sector is being closely watched for clues on how it performed during the holiday shopping period.

vigor stocks held up better than the rest of the economy, with a setback of less than 0.1% as crude oil prices rose.

“There’s just some uncertainty over this relief rally we’ve witnessed since last week,” said Adam Turnquist, chief technical strategist for LPL monetary.

The S&P 500 gained nearly 3% over a 3-day stretch before breaking for the Christmas holiday. On Thursday, the index posted a tiny decline.

Despite Friday’s drop, the economy is moving closer to another standout annual complete. The S&P 500 is on track for a boost of around 25% in 2024. That would mark a second consecutive yearly boost of more than 20%, the first period that has happened since 1997-1998.

The gains have been driven partly by upbeat economic data showing that consumers continued spending and the labor economy remained powerful. expense boost, while still high, has also been steadily easing.

A update on Friday showed that sales and inventory estimates for the wholesales trade industry fell 0.2% in November, following a slight boost in October. That weaker-than-expected update follows an update on the labor economy Thursday that showed unemployment benefits held steady last week.

The stream of upbeat economic data and easing expense boost helped prompt a reversal in the Federal safety net’s profit rate policy this year. Expectations for profit rate cuts also helped drive economy gains. The central financial institution recently delivered its third cut to profit rates in 2024.

Even though expense boost has arrive closer to the central financial institution’s target of 2%, it remains stubbornly above that mark and worries about it heating up again have tempered the approximate for more profit rate cuts.

expense boost concerns have added to uncertainties heading into 2025, which include the labor economy’s path ahead and shifting economic policies under incoming President Donald Trump. Worries have risen that Trump’s preference for tariffs and other policies could navigator to higher expense boost, a bigger U.S. government debt and difficulties for global trade.

Amedisys rose 4.7% after the home health worry and hospice services provider agreed to extend the deadline for its sale to UnitedHealth throng. The fairness Department had sued to block the $3.3 billion deal, citing concerns the combination would hinder access to home health and hospice services in the U.S.

The shift to extend the deadline comes ahead of an expected shift in regulatory policy under Trump. The incoming administration is expected to have a more permissive way to dealmaking and is less likely to raise antitrust concerns.

In Asia, Japan’s point of reference index surged as the yen remained frail against the dollar. Stocks in South Korea fell after the main opposition event voted to impeach the country’s acting chief.

Markets in Europe gained ground.

debt safety yields held relatively steady. The profit on the 10-year Treasury rose to 4.62% from 4.59% late Thursday. The profit on the two-year Treasury remained at 4.33% from late Thursday.

Wall Street will have more economic updates to look forward to next week, including reports on pending home sales and home prices. There will also be reports on U.S. construction spending and snapshots of manufacturing activity.