S&P 500 rises, Nasdaq near record as investors begin countdown to Fed decision

Bitcoin (BTC-USD) related stocks rose on Monday as Bitcoin (BTC-USD) hit a new all-time high above $106,800.

Token proxy MicroStrategy (MSTR) rose more than 4% on news that the software company will be included in the Nasdaq 100 (^NDX). MicroStrategy is a major purchaser of Bitcoin.

“Joining the Nasdaq 100 will further improve MSTR’s market liquidity and further expand its capital flywheel and Bitcoin purchase program,” Bernstein analysts said Monday.

Mining stocks also rose, with MARA Holdings (MARA) and Riot Platforms (RIOT) up more than 9% and 7%, respectively.

Bitcoin (BTC-USD) regained the attention of investors on Monday as the world’s leading cryptocurrencies soared to new highs above $106,600.

The token traded above the $106,000 threshold around 11 a.m. ET after first touching a new record late Sunday night.

Cryptocurrencies have soared more than 50% since Donald Trump won the White House last month amid expectations for crypto-friendly policies under his administration.

Super Micro Computer stock (SMCI) fell as much as 14% early Monday before evening out its losses. The stock price fell about 5% in the first hour after the market opened.

Investors are reacting to recent news that the company will be removed from the Nasdaq 100 on December 23rd, along with Moderna (MRNA) and Illumina (ILMN).

Super Micro makes servers using Nvidia (NVDA) AI chips for data centers that power generative artificial intelligence software.

The company faces possible delisting from the Nasdaq exchange due to delays in filing annual and quarterly reports with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The delays followed a report this summer from short-seller Hindenburg Research that accused Super Micro of accounting violations and other charges.

Supermicro was recently granted an extension by Nasdaq and has until February 25th to file an application with the SEC.

Investors are rooting for MicroStrategy (MSTR) to bet on Bitcoin (BTC-USD). The company’s stock rose more than 3% after the software company announced in a Monday filing that it had recently purchased an additional $1.5 billion worth of cryptocurrencies. This means that the company currently owns 439,000 Bitcoins.

Also on Monday, Bitcoin hit a new high of over $106,000. Its rise was accelerated by the election of crypto-friendly President-elect Donald Trump.

MicroStrategy also received a boost last Friday’s news that it plans to join the Nasdaq 100 on December 23rd.

MicroStrategy stock is currently up 565% for the year and is up about 15% in the last month alone.

MSTR will be joined by Palantir (PLTR) and Axon Enterprises (AXON) on the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100, replacing Illumina (ILMN), Supermicro (SMCI), and Moderna (MRNA).

U.S. economic output reached its highest level in nearly three years by the end of 2024, according to the latest data from S&P Global.

S&P Global’s preliminary U.S. composite PMI, which tracks activity in both the services and manufacturing sectors, was 56.6 in December, up from 54.9 in August. Economists had expected the index to rise to 55.1.

Increased activity in the services sector led to the rise, with the services PMI business activity index hitting a 38-month high of 58.5. Meanwhile, the manufacturing PMI in December fell from 48.3 to 47.9, marking the lowest level for the index in three months. Numbers above 50 reflect expansion.

Chris Williamson, chief business economist at S&P Global Market Intelligence, said the U.S. economy in December was “consistent with GDP rising at an annualized rate of just over 3% in December,” the highest in nearly three years. He said he grew at a pace.

“The U.S. services economy is performing well, with production growing at the fastest pace since the economy reopened from coronavirus lockdowns in 2021,” Williamson said in a release. Ta.

According to Brooke DiPalma of Yahoo Finance, Sam’s Club is riding the double wave of Walmart’s (WMT) rise as budget-conscious consumers flock to wholesale retailers.

Launched in September 2023 and led by CEO Chris Nicholas, the wholesale club was founded in 1983 by Walmart founder Sam Walton to attract shoppers weary of inflation. I have benefited from it.

In the most recent fiscal quarter, same-store sales excluding fuel increased 7% compared to a 3.8% increase in the year-ago period. For the nine months ended Oct. 31, Sam’s Club had sales of $67.2 billion and operating profit of $1.8 billion.

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Stocks rose modestly on Monday as investors focused on the Federal Reserve’s last interest rate policy meeting of the year, which will be held this week. Bitcoin (BTC-USD) soared to a new record before hitting 100,000 per token. It remained around $4,000.

The Nasdaq Composite Index (^IXIC) rose more than 0.4% and the S&P 500 (^GSPC) rose 0.3%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) rose slightly following the longest losing streak of any blue-chip index.

Much of the market activity was happening in the cryptocurrency space. Shares of Bitcoin agency MicroStrategy (MSTR) soared more than 4% on news that the company has joined the Nasdaq 100.

Bitcoin itself soared to an all-time high of over $106,000 on Sunday, but fell to $104,000 at last check.

Investors are widely anticipating an announcement of a rate cut after Wednesday’s Federal Open Market Committee meeting, but the future trajectory of the rate cut seems less clear after recent stronger-than-expected inflation data.