While the German stock market was closed on Holy Eve, US stock markets still traded on the eve of their first and only statutory Christmas holiday. The Dow on the New York Stock Exchange closed at 43,297 points, 0.9% higher than the previous day’s close, in the shortened trading on Tuesday.
The broader S&P 500 index ended at 6,040 points, up 1.1%, and the technology-focused Nasdaq composite calculated the Nasdaq 100 at 21,798 points, a 1.4% gain.
The titles that have already performed strongly in 2024 were in high demand. On the one hand, the narrative is that many funds and other market participants, who must disclose their portfolios, rush to buy the good performers, and on the other hand, many investors speculate on this effect and drive the prices of the corresponding papers even higher.
MicroStrategy, for example, with a year-to-date gain of over 400%, added more than 7% alone on Tuesday. Papers from Tesla, the electric car maker founded by Elon Musk, which has increased by around 70% this year, also saw a similar increase in value within a day of trading.
The US dollar was also in demand, and the European common currency, the euro, was accordingly about 0.1% weaker at the end of the day, with one euro costing 1.0391 US dollars and one dollar being worth 0.9624 euros.
The gold price showed no change after a fluctuation, and at the end of the day, one fine ounce was still worth 2,617 US dollars, equivalent to 80.97 euros per gram.
The oil price, on the other hand, rose significantly: a barrel of Brent crude oil cost 73.46 US dollars at the end of the day, an increase of 83 cents or 1.1% from the previous day’s close.
In contrast to the German stock exchanges, which will only have two trading days on December 27 and the shortened December 30, the US markets will also be open on December 26 and 31.