NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks hit records Friday following a mixed report on the U.S. job market, one that may delay another cut to interest rates by the Federal Reserve but does not slam the door on it.
The S&P 500 climbed 0.6% and topped its prior all-time high set earlier in the week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 237 points, or 0.5%, and likewise set a record, while the Nasdaq composite led the market with a 0.8% gain.
The moves came after the U.S. Labor Department said employers hired fewer workers during December than economists expected, though the unemployment rate improved and was better than expected. It reinforced how the U.S. job market may be in a “ low-hire, low-fire” state and may hopefully avoid a recession.
On Wall Street, power company Vistra soared 10.5% to help lead the market after signing a 20-year deal to provide electricity from three of its nuclear plants to Meta Platforms. Big Tech companies have been signing a string of such deals to electrify the data centers powering their moves into artificial-intelligence technology.
Oklo jumped 7.9% after saying it also signed a deal with Meta Platforms that will help it secure nuclear fuel and advance its project to build a facility in Pike County, Ohio.
Homebuilders and other companies involved in the housing market were strong in their first trading after President Donald Trump announced a plan to lower mortgage rates. Trump on late Thursday called for the purchase of $200 billion in mortgage bonds, similar to how the Fed in the past has bought bonds backed by mortgages to bring down mortgage rates.
Builders FirstSource, a supplier of building products, jumped 12% for one of the biggest gains in the S&P 500 along with Vistra. Among homebuilders, Lennar rallied 8.9%, D.R. Horton climbed 7.8% and PulteGroup rose 7.3%.
They helped offset a 2.7% drop for General Motors. The auto giant said it will take a $6 billion hit to its results for the last three months of 2025 related to its pullback from electric vehicles. That’s on top of the $1.6 billion in charges GM took in the prior quarter. Fewer tax incentives and easier fuel-emission regulations have been eating into demand for EVs.
WD-40 tumbled 6.6% after reporting a weaker profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected. Chief Financial Officer Sara Hyzer said the soft numbers were primarily because of timing issues, not weaker demand from end customers, and the company stood by its financial forecasts for the upcoming year.
All told, the S&P 500 rose 44.82 points to 6,966.28. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 237.96 to 49,504.07, and the Nasdaq composite climbed 191.33 to 23,671.35.
