US stocks held steady on Tuesday as cautious investors weighed Nvidia’s (NVDA) big AI plans and puzzled over tariff prospects, with fresh jobs data on deck.
The benchmark S&P 500 (^GSPC) inched up 0.3%, holding near tech-fueled prior-session gains. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) also rose 0.3%, while those on the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) added around 0.2%.
Buzz around Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang’s CES keynote is providing a bright spot for markets used to moving tentatively amid uncertainty around policy from the incoming Trump administration.
Shares in Nvidia rose around 2% in early trade, coming off hitting a record high close, after Huang revealed a new AI superchip among other planned products. Chip stocks extended their rally in its wake, with Micron Technology (MU) up about 4% and Asia names making gains.
At the same time, the watch is on for more clarity around Donald Trump’s tariff agenda. The president-elect on Monday denied a Washington Post report that his team is considering more targeted measures — which would be more promising for global growth. The dollar (DX-Y.NYB) continued to come under pressure, having sunk to one-week lows.
An update on JOLTS job openings in November later in the day will feed into the debate over the path of interest rates, as well as setting the stage for Friday’s all-important December jobs report. In recent days, Fed officials have signaled they would take a more gradual approach to cuts, given resilience in the jobs market and persistent inflation.
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Job openings increase more than expected in November
Job openings rose more than expected in November as investors continue to dissect the pace of the labor market slowdown amid questions over how much further the Federal Reserve will slash interest rates this year.
New data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics released Tuesday showed there were 8.1 million jobs open at the end of November, an increase from the 7.84 million seen in October.
The October figure was revised higher from the 7.74 million open jobs initially reported. Economists surveyed by Bloomberg had expected Tuesday’s report to show 7.74 million openings in November
The Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) also showed 5.27 million hires were made during the month, down from the 5.39 million made during October. The hiring rate fell to 3.3% from the 3.4% seen in October. Also in Tuesday’s report, the quits rate, a sign of confidence among workers, fell to 1.9% from the 2.1% seen in October. Total quits decreased to 3.07 million from 3.2.8 million seen in October.
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