U.S. equities ended the session with a mixed performance as investors weighed hopes for peace, hopes for a rate cut, but concerns about inflation continue to weigh as import prices rose sharply. The Dow Jones Industrial Average managed to avoid finishing in negative territory largely due to a sharp gain in UnitedHealth Group (UNH), which jumped 11.98%. The rally in UNH came after reports that Berkshire Hathaway purchased shares of the company during the most recent quarter, boosting investor sentiment and offsetting weakness elsewhere in the index.
Intraday, the Dow pushed to a record high of 45,203.52, driven by early-session buying and enthusiasm over the UNH news. However, gains were pared later in the session as profit-taking set in and broader market momentum stalled. The index ultimately settled at 44,946.12, slipping back below its record closing high of 45,014.04 set earlier this week.
The broader market picture was more mixed. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite saw varied performance, with tech names facing modest headwinds and certain cyclical sectors showing resilience. Traders noted that without the surge in UnitedHealth, the Dow likely would have joined the other benchmarks in closing lower for the day.
A snapshot of the closing levels shows:
- Dow industrial average rose 34.86 points or 0.08% at 44946.18
- S&P index fell -18.74 point or -0.29% at 6449.80
- NASDAQ index fell -87.69 points or -0.43% at 21622.98.
The small-cap Russell 2000 closed down -12.55 points or -0.55% at 2286.52.
For the trading week, the major indices closed higher with the Dow industrial average outpacing the S&P and the NASDAQ indices.:
- Dow industrial average rose 1.74%
- S&P index rose up 0.94%
- NASDAQ index rose 0.81%
