US STOCKS CLOSE MIXED ON FIRST TRADING DAY OF 2026

NEW YORK, Jan 3 (Bernama-Xinhua) -- US stock indices ended mixed on Friday, the first trading day of 2026, as Wall Street resumed activity following the New Year's holiday and built cautiously on the previous year's strong gains, reported Xinhua.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.66 per cent to 48,382.39. The S&P 500 added 0.19 per cent to 6,858.47. The Nasdaq Composite Index edged down 0.03 per cent to 23,235.63.

Eight of the 11 primary S&P 500 sectors closed higher, led by energy and industrials with advances of 2.09 per cent and 1.88 per cent, respectively, while consumer discretionary and communication services lagged, declining 1.14 per cent and 0.38 per cent.

Market participants expressed broad optimism for 2026, with most Wall Street forecasts tracked by Bloomberg anticipating a fourth straight year of equity gains, supported by resilient corporate earnings and expectations for gradual monetary-policy easing.

Semiconductor stocks provided support, with Nvidia gaining more than 1 per cent and Micron Technology surging over 10 per cent, extending their strong performance from 2025.

US-listed shares of Chinese technology firm Baidu jumped 15.03 per cent after its AI chip subsidiary, Kunlunxin, filed for an initial public offering in Hong Kong, reflecting growing investor interest in China's domestic semiconductor development.

Tesla fell 2.59 percent following the release of delivery figures for the fourth quarter of 2025 that fell short of analyst estimates, amid a broader slowdown in electric-vehicle demand after the expiration of federal tax credits.  

-- BERNAMA-XINHUA