U.S. equity futures were pointing to a subdued start on Wednesday, indicating that stocks may trade unevenly as investors pause following two consecutive sessions of gains.
After a strong kickoff to the first full trading week of the year, some market participants appear inclined to step back and reassess risk. A similar pattern unfolded on Tuesday, when futures suggested a flat opening before the Dow and the S&P 500 ultimately pushed to fresh record closing levels.
Futures trading showed little reaction to the latest employment figures from payrolls processor ADP, which indicated that private-sector hiring in the U.S. slowed slightly more than economists had anticipated in December.
According to ADP, private employment rose by 41,000 jobs last month, following a revised decline of 29,000 in November. Economists had forecast an increase of about 47,000 jobs, compared with the previously reported loss of 32,000 in the prior month.
Commenting on the report, ADP chief economist Dr. Nela Richardson said: “Small establishments recovered from November job losses with positive end-of-year hiring, even as large employers pulled back.”
Tuesday’s session extended the early-year rally, with continued buying lifting the Dow and the S&P 500 to new all-time closing highs.
The major indexes finished just shy of their intraday peaks. The Dow climbed 484.90 points, or 1.0%, to 49,462.08, the Nasdaq gained 151.35 points, or 0.7%, to 23,547.17, and the S&P 500 advanced 42.77 points, or 0.6%, to 6,944.82.
A significant driver of the Dow’s advance was Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN), which surged 3.4%. The company reached a record close after announcing the rollout of Alexa.com to Alexa+ Early Access users, a move seen as an effort to compete more directly with ChatGPT and Gemini.
Additional strength came from gains in Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN), Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) and IBM Corp. (NYSE:IBM).
The broader market’s advance has continued despite a lack of immediate catalysts, as investors turn their attention to a slate of key U.S. economic releases scheduled in the days ahead.
Friday’s monthly jobs report from the Labor Department is expected to be the focal point of the week, as it could influence expectations for interest rates ahead of the Federal Reserve’s next policy meeting.
While the Fed is widely expected to keep rates unchanged at its January 27–28 meeting, markets continue to price in at least one additional quarter-point rate cut later in the year.
On the sector front, computer hardware stocks posted some of the strongest gains, with the NYSE Arca Computer Hardware Index rising 4.3%.
Higher gold prices also boosted mining shares, reflected in a 4.1% jump in the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index. Biotechnology stocks were also strong, pushing the NYSE Arca Biotechnology Index up 3.0%.
Semiconductor, retail and healthcare stocks also moved higher, while energy shares lagged after crude oil prices pulled back.
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