The Economic Times·2025-12-12 01:36Market Overview - The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose by 651.37 points, or 1.36%, closing at 48,709.12, marking an intraday record high, while the S&P 500 gained 14.34 points, or 0.21%, ending at 6,902.19. In contrast, the Nasdaq Composite fell by 60.30 points, or 0.25%, to 23,597.26 [6][8][9] Federal Reserve Impact - The Federal Reserve lowered borrowing costs by 25 basis points and indicated a pause on further easing, which was perceived positively by investors. The Fed's dot plot still shows two potential rate cuts, balancing elevated inflation with signs of labor market weakness [2][4][8] Sector Performance - Financial stocks led the market rally, with notable gains from Visa, JP Morgan, and Goldman Sachs. In contrast, communications services and technology stocks, including Broadcom and Oracle, faced declines due to concerns over Oracle's financial performance and its heavy reliance on debt financing [6][7][8][9] Company-Specific Developments - Walt Disney announced a $1 billion equity investment in OpenAI, which may alleviate some concerns regarding the AI sector. However, Oracle's shares dropped after its quarterly forecasts fell short of expectations, raising fears about its AI cloud computing strategy and increasing the cost of insuring its debt against default [7][8][9] Labor Market Data - Jobless claims rose to 236,000 for the week ending December 6, exceeding estimates of 220,000, highlighting ongoing concerns in the labor market [4][8]