Stocks Navigate Mixed Signals amid Low Volume Trading

Wall Street experienced a mixed start to a short trading week as major indexes responded to the recent Congressional spending bill, preventing a government shutdown. Key stock movements included Qualcomm's rise after a legal win, and Eli Lilly's gain following drug approval, against a backdrop of low trading volumes.

On Monday, Wall Street's main indexes reflected mixed outcomes at the commencement of a holiday-shortened week. This followed a stopgap government funding bill that prevented a partial shutdown, coupled with investor anticipation of a steadied pace of rate cuts from the U.S. central bank in the upcoming year.

As of 09:45 am ET, significant movements were observed in the stock market: the Dow Jones Industrial Average declined by 132.48 points (0.32%) to 42,704.92, the S&P 500 saw a modest increase of 1.04 points (0.01%) to 5,931.36, and the Nasdaq Composite climbed by 57.63 points (0.31%) to 19,630.23. Notable gainers included Nvidia and Meta Platforms, which supported the S&P 500 and the technology-centric Nasdaq.

Trading volumes are predicted to diminish as U.S. stock markets prepare for early closure on Tuesday before the Christmas break. In other stock movements, Qualcomm surged 2.8% post-verdict in its favor against Arm Holdings, while Eli Lilly rose 1.6% following FDA approval for its weight-loss drug targeting sleep apnea. In contrast, shares of ResMed and Inspire Medical retreated after the announcement.

(With inputs from agencies.)