How Major US Stock Indexes Performed on December 20, 2024

On December 20, 2024, U.S. stocks experienced a significant upturn, successfully transforming what could have been one of the year's worst weeks into a less detrimental one overall.

The S&P 500 made a strong comeback, gaining 1.1% and reducing its weekly loss to 2%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average saw a sharp increase of nearly 500 points, while the Nasdaq composite climbed 1%. This rally came after a report indicated that a key inflation measure, favored by the Federal Reserve, was lower than anticipated last month.

This news provided some relief after the Fed surprised investors earlier in the week by expressing concerns that persistent inflation might prevent it from reducing interest rates in 2025 as much as initially believed.

Performance of Major Indexes

On Friday, the following performances were recorded for major U.S. stock indexes:

• S&P 500: Increased by 63.77 points, or 1.1%, closing at 5,930.85.
• Dow Jones Industrial Average: Rose by 498.02 points, or 1.2%, reaching 42,840.26.
• Nasdaq Composite: Gained 199.83 points, or 1%, finishing at 19,572.60.
• Russell 2000: Climbed by 20.87 points, or 0.9%, to close at 2,242.37.

Weekly Summary

Despite Friday's positive performance, the overall results for the week were still negative:

• S&P 500: Down by 120.24 points, or 2%.
• Dow: Declined by 987.80 points, or 2.3%.
• Nasdaq: Fell by 354.13 points, or 1.8%.
• Russell 2000: Decreased by 104.52 points, or 4.5%.

Year-to-Date Performance

On a more positive note for the year, the performance of these indexes has shown considerable gains:

• S&P 500: Up by 1,161.02 points, or 24.3%.
• Dow: Increased by 5,150.72 points, or 13.7%.
• Nasdaq: Rose by 4,561.25 points, or 30.4%.
• Russell 2000: Gained 215.30 points, or 10.6%.

In conclusion, while December 20 brought a welcomed surge in U.S. stock prices, the overall week presented challenges that investors will be keen to monitor as the market looks ahead.

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