NEW YORK — Wall Street rose modestly in light holiday trading Wednesday after the government released downbeat, but unsurprising, readings on rising U.S. joblessness and declining consumer spending.
The swelling rate of unemployment has been particularly worrisome to investors. The more people lose their jobs, or fear they will lose their jobs, the more they close their wallets. And consumer spending accounts for more than two-thirds of U.S. economic activity.
But Wall Street’s reaction to Wednesday’s data was a shrug. Investors have largely been factoring in bad numbers for the fourth quarter as Americans adjusted to the slumping economy and as banks and automakers scrambled for funding from the U.S. government to stay afloat.
“We’ve got to get through this year — it’s been crazy — and just start over,” said Stephen Carl, principal and head of equity trading at the Williams Capital Group.
Wednesday’s stock moves were considered largely inconsequential in the grand scheme of things. Trading volumes were extremely low ahead of Christmas, and the markets closed early at 1 p.m. EST.
With only four trading days left in 2008, most buying and selling appeared to be investors trying to dress up their portfolios after a year of unprecedented market turmoil.
The Dow Jones industrial average rose 48.99 to 8,468.48, after falling for five straight sessions. The Standard & Poor’s 500 rose 2.26 to 865.42, and the Nasdaq composite index rose 3.36 to 1,524.90.
