New York, Jan 6, 2026, 13:32 EST — Regular session
- Dow extends its record run in afternoon trade
- UnitedHealth and Amazon help drive gains among blue-chip names
- Traders focus turns to Friday’s U.S. jobs report and Fed signals
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose about 0.9% on Tuesday and hovered near another record, while the SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF (DIA), which tracks the index, also gained about 0.9%. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq were up roughly 0.5% each.
The move keeps the blue-chip index within sight of the 50,000 mark after a strong start to 2026. Investors positioned for Friday’s nonfarm payrolls report — the government’s monthly jobs count — for clues on how soon the Federal Reserve may cut rates again, with healthcare and technology shares providing support, Art Hogan, chief market strategist at B. Riley Wealth, said.
Richmond Fed President Thomas Barkin struck a cautious tone on Tuesday, saying future rate changes will need to be “finely tuned” to incoming data as officials balance risks to both inflation and employment. The Fed’s next policy meeting is set for Jan. 27-28, and Barkin said the December jobs report due Friday would help fill an information gap after disruptions to some federal data releases. Reuters
Inside the Dow, UnitedHealth and Amazon led much of the benchmark’s climb, reflecting how a handful of big movers can swing the index. The Dow is price-weighted — meaning higher-priced stocks carry more influence — and a $1 move in any component translates into about 6 points on the index.
Elsewhere, the market’s AI-linked trade showed sharp cross-currents. Johnson Controls and Trane Technologies slid after Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said the chipmaker’s next platform could reduce cooling needs in data centers; Barclays analyst Julian Mitchell warned investors not to brush off Nvidia’s comments, even if they seemed dramatic.
The CES technology show in Las Vegas stayed in focus after Advanced Micro Devices CEO Lisa Su showcased new AI chips and OpenAI President Greg Brockman underscored how much chip advances matter to the company’s computing needs. AMD also detailed a next-generation processor line it expects to launch in 2027.
Financials were mixed after a high-profile executive shift. AIG fell after it named Aon’s Eric Andersen as its next CEO and said Peter Zaffino will move to an executive chair role; KBW called Andersen a “highly-respected” insurance leader, while J.P. Morgan said the change injects uncertainty into the investment case. Reuters
Tuesday’s gains built on Monday’s surge that pushed the Dow to a record close, with the index up 1.23% to 48,977.18 as banks and energy stocks rallied. The jump followed a U.S. military strike that captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, with U.S. Bank’s Rob Haworth pointing to expectations for more investment tied to Venezuela and Interactive Brokers’ Steve Sosnick citing a shift toward financial stocks as investors look beyond tech.
But the rally still leans on two big assumptions: that the Fed can ease policy without reigniting inflation and that geopolitics does not spill into broader risk aversion. Traders have been pricing in two rate cuts this year, while questions remain over how fast and at what cost companies could bring Venezuelan crude back to market, Siebert Financial’s Mark Malek said.
Next up, investors will parse a run of labor-market updates ahead of Friday’s nonfarm payrolls report on Jan. 9. Markets are also watching for planned talks this week between the Trump administration and oil company executives on Venezuelan production after Monday’s energy-led spike.
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