US stocks closed at record highs on Friday as investors reacted to the December jobs report and awaited potential Fed guidance. The S&P 500 gained 0.6% and the Dow rose 0.5%, both hitting new highs, while the Nasdaq added 0.8%. The December report showed nonfarm payrolls increasing by 50,000, below expectations, while the unemployment rate fell to 4.4%, signaling a labor market that remains steady but slow-growing. Chipmakers led sector gains, with Broadcom (+3.8%), Intel (+10.8%), and Lam Research (+8.7%) climbing sharply on investor optimism over AI and semiconductor growth. Homebuilders and home improvement stocks also advanced after President Trump directed mortgage bond purchases to lower rates, with D.R. Horton (+7.8%), PulteGroup (+7.3%), Lennar (+8.8%), and Home Depot (+2.2%) all rising. For the week, all three major indexes posted solid gains, with the S&P 500 up 1%, the Nasdaq rising 1.3%, and the Dow advancing 1.2%.
India's BSE Sensex closed about 0.7% down at 83,576 on Friday, the lowest since November 10, extending losses for a fifth day. Persistent FII outflows, uncertainty surrounding US-India tariff negotiations and escalating geopolitical tensions continued to weigh. Investors grew concerned over a potential 500% tariff on countries like India, a major buyer of Russian oil, while awaiting the US Supreme Court’s ruling on Trump-era tariffs. On the macro front, attention turned to the upcoming US jobs report and the release of domestic December inflation data, due next Monday, which is seen rising to 1.5%. Oil and gas stocks were the biggest losers, along with financials, autos, and metals. NTPC (-2.4%), Adani Ports (-2.2%), ICICI Bank (-2.1%), and Bharti Airtel (-1.7%) led the declines, while the IT sector advanced on optimism ahead of TCS and HCL Tech earnings on Monday. For the week, the index shed 2.5%, marking the first weekly fall in three weeks and the worst performance since September.
