Nasdaq 100 Breaks Losing Streak as Tech Stocks Rally Amid Mixed Economic Signs

On the first week's final trading day of 2024, the Nasdaq 100 managed a slight uptick of 0.15%, thereby snapping a five-day losing streak not seen since October 2022. This small but notable gain in the tech-heavy index brought relief to investors following a period of consistent declines.

The trading session on Friday was characterized by volatility, with the Nasdaq 100 swinging between a peak of 16,415 and a trough of 16,249 throughout the day.

Mixed economic indicators played a role in influencing market sentiment. Notably, employment data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics revealed that non-farm payrolls in December soared by 216,000 jobs, notably surpassing the 170,000 that had been forecasted while keeping the unemployment rate steady at 3.7% against an expected rise.

In contrast to the strong jobs report, the Service PMI survey from the Institute for Supply Management underperformed expectations, hinting at a potential slowdown in the service sector's growth.

In light of these economic updates, Thomas Barkin of the Richmond Federal Reserve suggested a gradual softening in the labor market, despite the U.S. facing persistent inflationary pressures and high employment levels.

Highlighting Individual Nasdaq 100 Performers

From amongst the holdings of the Invesco QQQ Trust, notable performers that stood out in Friday's trading session included:

Marvell Technology, Inc. (MRVL) with a 3.77% rise, Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) up by 3.07%, and PayPal Holdings, Inc. (PYPL) increasing 2.87%. Additionally, Datadog, Inc. (DDOG) and NVIDIA Corporation (NVDA) also experienced gains of 2.64% and 2.26% respectively.

On the flip side, there were those that did not fare as well in Friday’s trading, including:

Verisk Analytics, Inc. (VRSK) which dropped by 1.73%, followed by PepsiCo, Inc. (PEP) falling 1.49%, and Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. (WBDISCA) descending by 1.41%. Gilead Sciences, Inc. (GILD) and Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. (ODFL) likewise saw declines of 1.40% and 1.37%, respectively.

Nasdaq, Tech, Stocks