S&P 500, Dow Rally To Record Highs, Dollar Snaps 8-Week Streak, Bitcoin Soars Above $97,000: What's Driving Markets Friday?

Risk-on sentiment gained momentum on Wall Street after the Thanksgiving holiday, fueled by investor optimism over fourth-quarter profit forecasts for U.S. corporations, lifting both the S&P 500 and Dow Jones to fresh record highs.

The S&P 500 broke past the 6,040-point mark on Friday and closed at 6,032, extending its year-to-date gains to an impressive 27%. If the year ended on Friday, the broader U.S. stock market would have surged by a staggering 57% over the last two years, representing the strongest such rally since 1998.

The Dow Jones also hit a record-high milestone, surging above the 45,000 level and bringing its year-to-date gains to 19%.

Technology stocks outperformed, with the Nasdaq 100 rising 1% on the day, buoyed by gains in the Magnificent Seven mega caps and semiconductor stocks.

Small caps stocks posted more modest gains, as the Russell 2000 index edged up 0.4%.

In the currency market, the U.S. dollar snapped its eight-week winning streak, pressured by a drop against the Japanese yen amid speculation of a possible Bank of Japan interest rate hike.

In the bond market, Treasury yields edged lower by about 5 basis points, with the 10-year yield approaching 4.2%, a level not seen since late October. The iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF TLT rallied 1%, reaching over one-month highs.

Commodities also saw a positive price action. Gold rose 0.8%, marking its fourth consecutive session of gains, and silver jumped 1.4%. Natural gas prices spiked 4.9%, ending the month with a 24% surge. The underperformer was crude, which eased 0.2%.

In cryptocurrency markets, Bitcoin BTC/USD rebounded 1.6%, climbing above $97,000 and signaling resilience for the digital asset universe amid broader market enthusiasm.

Friday’s Performance In Major US Indices, ETFs

Major Indices	Price	Chg (%)
Nasdaq 100	20,930	+0.9%
S&P 500	6,032	+0.6%
Dow Jones	44,910	+0.4%
Russell 2000	2,434	+0.3%

According to Benzinga Pro data:

• The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust SPY edged 0.6% higher to $509.61.
• The SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average DIA rose 0.5% to $450.
• The tech-heavy Invesco QQQ Trust Series QQQ rallied 0.9% to $509.61.
• The iShares Russell 2000 ETF IWM rose 0.5% to $242.10.
• The Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund XLK outperformed, rising 0.9%. The Real Estate Select Sector SPDR Fund XLRE lagged, down 0.5%.

Friday’s Stock Movers

• Apple Inc. AAPL rose by 1.1% to $273.62 per share, hitting a fresh record high.
• U.S.-listed shares of Brazilian companies sold off heavily as investors were disappointed by the latest fiscal reform from the Lula government. Shares of Nu Holdings Ltd. NU, StoneCo Ltd. STNE and XP Inc. XP tumbled by 7.2%, 9.1% and 9.2%, respectively.
• Tesla Inc. TSLA jumped 4% after Wedbush projected the EV giant could tap into $1 trillion in AI and self-driving opportunities, with fewer regulatory hurdles potentially lifting its valuation to $1.5-$2 trillion.

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