By Connor Smith
Lagging Indicator. Wall Street cheered a lower unemployment rate, even though the November jobs figure missed expectations.
The Dow Jones Jones Industrial Average rose 238 points, or 0.5%. The S&P 500 gained 0.6%. The Nasdaq Composite rallied 0.8%. Each marked their best week since late November.
The U.S. economy added 50,000 nonfarm jobs in November, which was below economist expectations for 55,000. At 4.4%, the unemployment rate still came in below the expected 4.5%, and November's figure was revised lower to 4.5%.
Artificial intelligence stocks rallied after Meta Platforms unveiled separate deals with nuclear firms Oklo, TerraPower, and Vistra to address the firm's AI-related energy demands. The utilities sector soared 1.2%, while the iShares Semiconductor ETF rallied 2.9%.
The rest of the market rallied too, even though many strategists viewed the jobs data as lackluster. It capped off a 2025 that featured the worst job growth since 2003, outside of a recession.
It could be a case of markets viewing the labor market as an already dated, lagging indicator, says David Donabedian, a senior investment strategist at CIBC Private Wealth Management.
"People are getting more bullish on economic growth prospects for 2026, regardless of what the trailing employment situation looks like," Donabedian told me. "Thinking about the impact of the rate cuts we've already seen, the expected upcoming stimulus from the One Big Beautiful Bill, and a bounce in some of the data."
Heading into the session, many on Wall Street were anticipating a Supreme Court ruling on President Donald Trump's use of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act to enact tariffs. But the only decision released today was unrelated to trade.
Wall Street was hoping for more clarity surrounding the tariffs. So were retailers, which saw their shares briefly drop before bouncing back with the rest of the market.
Though many on Wall Street see the pullback of tariffs as a positive for stocks, Donabedian notes that the bond market has gotten comfortable with the impact of tariff collections on the U.S. trade deficit.
"If you get an aggressively negative Supreme Court ruling, you could see a kind of a revolt in the bond market, which makes me question the consensus that that ruling would be good for the equity market," he says.
The Hot Stock: Sandisk +12.8% The Biggest Loser: Las Vegas Sands -4.8%
Best Sector: Materials +1.8% Worst Sector: Healthcare -0.6%
This Weekend's Magazine
The Calendar
Earnings season kicks off next week as the big banks report their results. The bar to impress Wall Street will be high as many financial stocks are trading near record highs.
JPMorgan Chase reports results on Tuesday, followed by Bank of America, Citigroup, and Wells Fargo on Wednesday. Goldman Sachs Group and Morgan Stanley announce their earnings on Thursday, while PNC Financial Services Group rounds out the week on Friday.
On the economic front, the consumer price index, released on Tuesday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, will be the most important data for investors. The BLS will also release two months of producer price data on Wednesday, along with existing-home sales from the National Association of Realtors.
-- Dan Lam
What We're Reading Today
-- Meta Goes All In on Nuclear. These 2 Stocks Are Flying.
-- Saks Is Struggling to Stay Afloat. The Dealmaker Behind the Scenes Did
Just Fine.
-- Oil Isn't the Only Commodity at Play in the U.S. Ouster of Maduro
-- Real Estate Stocks Jump on Trump's Mortgage Bond Plan. Rates Hit 5.99%.
-- And this week's cover story: Our Roundtable Pros See More Gains for
Stocks, Especially Those Left Behind Until Now
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(END) Dow Jones Newswires
January 09, 2026 19:55 ET (00:55 GMT)
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