Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) on the morning that online image board Pinterest Inc. makes its initial public offering on April 18, 2019 in New York City.
Spencer Platt
Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 36 points
The Dow slipped 36.08 points, or 0.13%, to end the day at 28,515.45. The S&P 500 fell 0.02% to 3,223.38. The Nasdaq Composite rose to a new all-time high of 8,952.88. The S&P 500 has risen 2.6% for December and 8.3% for the quarter. It is also on pace for its best annual performance in six years, up 28.6% for 2019. If the benchmark ends the year up more than 29.6%, it will score
Santa rally period began
Tuesday marked the official start of the Santa Claus rally period, which happens on the final five trading days of the year and the first two tradings days of the new year. Stocks tend to have unusually strong performance during those trading days with the S&P 500 averaging a 1.3% gain since 1950, according to the Stock Trader’s Almanac.
Trade deal ‘getting done’
President Donald Trump said Tuesday that the phase one trade deal with China is getting done, adding there will be a signing ceremony with Chinese leader Xi Jinping.
Investors also cheered the news this week that China is taking action to goose its economy. The country said it will boost imports by cutting tariffs on over 850 products. The Chinese government also said it would study additional cuts in the bank reserve-ratio requirements.
The U.S. stock market is closed on Wednesday for Christmas. Thursday and Friday are regular trading days.