It’s the last trading day of a blockbuster year, and the S&P 500 is just shy of a new record.
Stock futures held steady Friday. If stocks rise, it will be the sixth consecutive day of gains for the index. A big enough jump–around 0.3%–would take the S&P 500 past the previous high-point reached in January 2022.
The index is poised to finish the year up 25%, defying the impact of higher interest rates, a new war in the Middle East (let alone the continuing conflict in Ukraine) and a regional banking crisis.
The biggest gainer in the S&P 500 over 2023 was chipmaker Nvidia, which gained a stonking 240% through Thursday. Not far behind is Meta Platforms, up nearly 200%, rewarding those who had faith in Mark Zuckerberg to turn the Instagram owner around.
Another big winner: Bitcoin rebounded 156% and trades for more than $42,500.
Futures contracts tied to the Nasdaq 100 and Dow industrials also rose. The Dow hit a new record high Thursday.
European stocks were closing the year strongly, too. The Stoxx Europe 600 Index inched higher, on track to finish 2023 up 12.5%, its largest annual gain since 2021.
Not everyone had a great year. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index fell for the fourth straight year, dropping 14% in 2023. It was flat Friday.
Oil prices have slipped 10% this year. Prices rose slightly Friday, the final trading day of 2023.
The dollar is down 2% over 2023, when measured against a basket of major currencies.
