Wall St rallies amid energy surge after Venezuela strike; Dow hits record

The San Juan Daily Star
2 days ago
3 min read

Wall Street’s main indexes surged ‌on Monday, with the blue-chip Dow hitting an ‌all-time high on a boost from surging financial stocks, while energy firms rose after a U.S. military strike that captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.

Investors bet the move against Venezuela’s leadership would allow American firms access to the world’s largest oil ‍reserves. A U.S. embargo on Venezuelan oil remained in full effect, U.S. President Donald Trump said.

S&P’s energy index hit an over one-year high, up 2.5% with heavyweights Exxon Mobil and Chevron rising 2.5% and 5.5%, respectively.

Defence-related stocks also advanced after Washington’s military action. Lockheed Martin rose 2.2% and General Dynamics climbed 2.8%, while the broader aerospace and defence index reached a historic peak.

At 11:48 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 705.41 points, or 1.46%, to 49,087.80, the S&P 500 gained 58.59 points, or 0.85%, to 6,917.30 and the Nasdaq Composite gained 234.02 points, or 1.01%, to 23,469.64.

Financials, ‌up 2.5%, was the biggest boost. Big banks such as Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase rose to record highs and were up ‌between 1.9% and 3.9%.

“The mood ‍has been favoring financial ⁠stocks in recent days and as people look beyond tech, this is a sector many are choosing to look toward to,” said Steve Sosnick, chief market analyst at Interactive Brokers.

“We ended the year on a lousy note. (But) It’s normal for markets to try to start a new month or a new year on a positive tone, so we’re seeing a risk on mood,” said Sosnick.

Consumer staples and healthcare - considered traditionally defensive - lost 0.3% and 0.9%, respectively, on Monday.

Wall Street’s main indexes posted double-digit gains in 2025 for the third consecutive year, a run last seen during 2019-2021, but rounded off the previous week with losses as investors largely sold off tech stocks.

The sector was largely stable on Monday, up 0.4%, while among consumer discretionary names, Tesla outperformed, rising 4.2% after seven straight sessions of losses, supporting the Nasdaq.

After 2025’s last four sessions ended in the red, Monday’s rise came as a relief to investors eyeing a “Santa Claus rally” - a seasonal phenomenon in which markets tend to get a late boost over the last five trading days of December and the first two of January, according to the Stock Trader’s Almanac.

Data showed U.S. manufacturing contracted more than expected in December, extending a 10-month slump.

The spotlight will now be on the monthly nonfarm payrolls on Friday, which could influence the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy in 2026.

Markets are pricing in about 60 basis points of interest rate easing this year, as per data compiled by LSEG.

Cryptocurrency-linked shares advanced as Bitcoin hit a more than three-week high. Strategy was up 4%, while Coinbase gained 7.2% after a report said Goldman Sachs upgraded the exchange to “buy” from “neutral”.

Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 2.65-to-1 ratio on the NYSE, and by a 2.25-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.

The S&P 500 posted 52 new 52-week highs and 10 new lows, while the Nasdaq Composite recorded 87 new highs and 38 new lows.

S&P’s energy index hit an over one-year high, up 2.5% with heavyweights Exxon Mobil and Chevron rising 2.5% ⁠and 5.5%, respectively.