Since the start of 2024, the S&P 500 has never once closed below its 200-day moving average, according to Bespoke Investment Group. Barring a sharp selloff between now and the end of the year, this would be only the 12th time since 1952 that this has happened.

Some of the biggest winners were mega-cap tech stocks, with Tesla up by 6% while Broadcom, Netflix, and Amazon each gained about 2%.

US stocks looked set for a mostly muted open to a final, shortened trading session before the Christmas holiday,

The Dow Jones Industrial Average went up 66.69 points or 0.2% to end at 42,906.95 for its third straight daily gain, according to Dow Jones Market Data. The S&P 500 went up 43.22 points or 0.7% to finish at 5,974.07.

Traders are also weighing the outlook for interest rate cuts in 2025 in light of recent inflation data. Personal consumption expenditures inflation, the Fed's preferred inflation measure, rose 2.4% year-per-year in November, slightly under expectations.

U.S. stock indexes edged higher in morning trading Tuesday, as gains for some Big Tech stocks made up for weakness elsewhere in the market. The S&P 500 rose 0.4%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 14 points,

Stocks have seen a stellar 2024, but the S&P 500 is in danger of a rare December loss. It’s all riding on the so-called Santa Claus rally.

Check back for updates throughout the trading day U.S. equity futures edged higher in early Monday trading as investors looked to the holiday-shortened week and the traditional 'Santa Claus rally' to pull stocks out of their sharp December downturn.