S&P 500 notches record high close driven by Broadcom, other chipmakers

NEW YORK - The S&P 500 rallied to a record high close on Jan 9, lifted by Broadcom and other chipmakers, while a weaker-than-expected jobs report did little to alter expectations of interest rate cuts from the Federal Reserve this year.

Wall Street’s three main indexes all gained sharply in 2026’s first full week of trading, fuelled by increases in materials, industrials and other sectors that have lagged technology stocks in recent years.

A Labour Department report showed US employment growth slowed more than expected in December, but a decline in the unemployment rate to 4.4 per cent suggested the labour market was not rapidly deteriorating.

Chip stocks rallied, with the PHLX semiconductor index jumping 2.7 per cent to a record high. Lam Research rallied 8.7 per cent to US$218.36 after Mizuho raised its price target on the chip manufacturing tool maker to US$220 from US$200. Broadcom rose 3.8 per cent, Alphabet added 1 per cent and Tesla climbed 2.1 per cent, all lifting the S&P 500 and Nasdaq.

Vistra jumped 10.5 per cent after Meta Platforms agreed to buy power from the company’s nuclear plants.

“On the overall AI theme, investors are getting granular and picking the winners and losers in terms of sub-themes and individual names,” said Mr Zachary Hill, head of portfolio management at Horizon Investments in Charlotte, North Carolina.

“We view that as a more positive development. It means that we’re getting closer to the monetisation phase, where people can actually see and touch the revenue enhancements that are going to come from this revolutionary technology.”

Intel rallied almost 11 per cent after Mr Trump said he had a “great meeting” with the chipmaker’s chief executive officer, Mr Lip-Bu Tan.

The S&P 500 climbed 0.65 per cent to end the session at 6,966.28 points.

The Nasdaq gained 0.82 per cent to 23,671.35 points, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.48 per cent to 49,504.07 points.

Nine of the 11 S&P 500 sector indexes rose, led by materials, up 1.8 per cent, followed by a 1.24 per cent gain in utilities.

For the week, the S&P 500 climbed 1.6 per cent, the Nasdaq rose 1.9 per cent and the Dow added 2.3 per cent.

Valuations on Wall Street were relatively high ahead of fourth-quarter earnings season.

The S&P 500 is trading at about 22 times expected earnings, down from 23 in November, but above its five-year average of 19, according to LSEG data.

Underscoring a recent shift towards stocks that have underperformed in recent years, the S&P 500 value index has climbed about 2 per cent so far in 2026, beating a 1 per cent gain in the S&P 500 growth index.

The US Supreme Court said it would not issue a ruling on Jan 9 on the legality of US President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs. This left investors, many of whom expected a decision, awaiting clarity.

Traders anticipate heightened volatility across financial markets if the court strikes down the tariffs. Mortgage lenders rose a day after Mr Trump said he is ordering his representatives to buy US$200 billion in mortgage bonds to bring down housing costs.

LoanDepot surged 19.3 per cent, Rocket Companies gained 9.6 per cent and Opendoor Technologies rallied 13.1 per cent.

The Philadelphia Housing index gained 5.7 per cent to its highest since October.

General Motors shares fell more than 2 per cent after the automaker said on Jan 8 it would take a US$6 billion charge to unwind some electric-vehicle investments.

Advancing issues outnumbered falling ones within the S&P 500 by a 1.3-to-one ratio.

The S&P 500 posted 48 new highs and 6 new lows; the Nasdaq recorded 140 new highs and 62 new lows.

Volume on US exchanges was relatively heavy, with 17 billion shares traded, compared to an average of 16.4 billion shares over the previous 20 sessions. REUTERS