NEW YORK, Nov. 26 (Xinhua) -- U.S. stocks ended higher on Tuesday, as investors balanced optimism in the tech sector with concerns about President-elect Donald Trump's promises to impose tariffs on key trade partners and uncertainty from the latest Federal Reserve minutes.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 123.74 points, or 0.28 percent, to 44,860.31, hitting a new record high. The S&P 500 added 34.26 points, or 0.57 percent, to 6,021.63, also hitting a new high. The Nasdaq Composite Index increased 119.46 points, or 0.63 percent, to 19,174.3.
Nine of the 11 primary S&P 500 sectors ended in green, with utilities and consumer discretionary leading the gainers by adding 1.56 percent and 0.90 percent, respectively. Meanwhile, materials and energy led the laggards by losing 0.67 percent and 0.23 percent, respectively.
Short-term interest rate futures pared earlier declines following the release of the Fed's November meeting minutes, which highlighted divisions among officials on the need for further interest rate cuts. The minutes also revealed a consensus to avoid providing firm guidance on the direction of U.S. monetary policy in the near term, leaving investors to interpret mixed signals.
"Participants anticipated that if the data came in about as expected, with inflation continuing to move down sustainably to 2 percent and the economy remaining near maximum employment, it would likely be appropriate to move gradually toward a more neutral stance of policy over time," the minutes read.
Overnight, Trump announced plans to impose a 25 percent conditional tariff on imports from Canada and Mexico for potential violations of a free-trade agreement he negotiated during his previous term. He also proposed an additional 10 percent tariff on top of existing duties for imports from China, escalating concerns over renewed trade conflicts and the potential for economic disruption.
Despite trade policy uncertainty, the U.S. labor market showed resilience. The Conference Board's latest consumer confidence survey revealed an improvement in the labor market differential, a key metric that tracks the gap between respondents who view jobs as "plentiful" versus those who consider them "hard to get." In November, the differential rose to 18.2 percent, marking its second consecutive increase from a September low of 12.7 percent.
The data signals growing optimism in the labor market, suggesting a continued recovery in employment conditions despite headwinds from geopolitical and economic uncertainties. However, the potential for escalating trade wars under Trump's proposed tariffs could weigh heavily on future economic sentiment. ■