Market Analysis

Nasdaq Climbs to New Peak with Big Tech Gains from Tesla, Google, Amazon, Apple

Amos Simanungkalit · 17 Dec 202440.1K Views

Image Credit: Yahoo!Finance

The Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) reached a new record high on Monday, driven by gains in major Big Tech stocks and a surge in bitcoin (BTC-USD) to new all-time highs ahead of the Federal Reserve's final policy meeting of the year.

The Nasdaq rose 1.2%, with Alphabet (GOOGL, GOOG), Tesla (TSLA), Amazon (AMZN), Apple (AAPL), and Broadcom (AVGO) all hitting fresh record highs. The S&P 500 (^GSPC) gained nearly 0.4%, moving closer to its own record, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) dropped 0.2% for the eighth consecutive session of losses.

Investors are focused on the Federal Reserve's meeting on Tuesday, particularly the interest rate decision on Wednesday, which is seen as a potential catalyst for the continued stock rally. A rate cut in 2024 is nearly guaranteed, with 97% of traders anticipating a 25 basis point move. The main uncertainty is whether the Fed will adjust its "dot plot" for 2025, considering ongoing inflation concerns and possible challenges from a Trump administration.

In corporate news, healthcare stocks like CVS (CVS), UnitedHealth (UNH), and Cigna (CI) saw declines following President-elect Donald Trump's remarks about targeting pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs), often blamed for rising drug prices.

Software firm MicroStrategy (MSTR) saw its stock rise as it prepared to join the Nasdaq 100 (^NDX), while bitcoin hit a record high above $107,000 amid growing expectations for a crypto-friendly Trump administration. Shares of Super Micro Computer Inc. (SMCI) fell as the company is set to be removed from the Nasdaq 100.