Wall Street’s main indexes closed higher on Tuesday, driven by gains in megacap and growth stocks during a shortened Christmas Eve session.
Both the Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI) and the Nasdaq Composite (.IXIC) marked four consecutive sessions of gains.
The Dow’s rise follows its longest losing streak since 1974, a 10-session skid earlier this month.
Tuesday marked the beginning of the “Santa Claus rally,” a historically strong period when the S&P 500 typically gains 1.3% in the last five days of December and the first two days of January, according to the Stock Trader’s Almanac.
Megacap stocks played a key role in the market’s performance, amplified by light holiday trading volumes.
All seven of the so-called Magnificent Seven technology stocks climbed, with Tesla (TSLA.O) leading the charge.
Tesla’s surge helped propel consumer discretionary shares higher, making it the top-performing sector in the S&P 500.
Chipmakers also saw gains, with Broadcom (AVGO.O) and Nvidia (NVDA.O) rising, while Arm Holdings recovered after a court loss the previous day.
Despite elevated U.S. Treasury interest rates, which typically hinder growth stocks, optimism around long-term technology trends like artificial intelligence overshadowed near-term concerns.
“This reinforces that view that the sector is going to remain strong, and should be well into the new year,” said Charlie Ripley, senior investment strategist at Allianz Investment Management.
The S&P 500 (.SPX) gained 64.93 points, or 1.09%, to close at 6,039.00.
The Nasdaq Composite (.IXIC) added 264.31 points, or 1.34%, ending at 20,029.19.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI) rose 366.75 points, or 0.85%, to finish at 43,273.70.
Markets closed early at 1:00 p.m. ET on Tuesday and remained shut on Wednesday for Christmas.
Crypto-related stocks also performed well, buoyed by Bitcoin’s price increase, while NeueHealth (NEUE.N) soared following a $1.3 billion privatization deal led by its largest shareholder.