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Big tech names push Wall Street higher

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Dow, Nasdaq posts third straight positive sessions

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Qualcomm ( QCOM ) up after win against Arm in chips trial

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Lilly gains after weight-loss drug approved for sleep

apnea

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Indexes up: Dow 0.16%, S&P 500 0.73%, Nasdaq 0.98%

(Adds market details after close of trading)

By David French

Dec 23 (Reuters) - Wall Street's main indexes all ended

higher on Monday, with both the Dow Jones Industrial Average and

the Nasdaq Composite making it three straight wins, aided by

gains by many of the so-called Magnificent Seven tech stocks on

a holiday-thinned trading day.

With megacap stocks having outsized influence on markets,

their performance during a week in which many investors take

time off will be even more pronounced. Volumes on U.S. exchanges

were 12.76 billion shares, down from the 14.89 billion shares

average from the previous 20 trading days.

Meta Platforms ( META ), Nvidia ( NVDA ) and Tesla

all closed between 2.3% and 3.7% higher, with Apple ( AAPL ),

Amazon.com ( AMZN ), and Google parent Alphabet also

in positive territory.

The gains helped propel the Nasdaq Composite and the

Dow Jones Industrial Average to their third straight

increases, and a second advance in three sessions for the S&P

500.

The S&P 500 gained 43.22 points, or 0.73%, to

5,974.07 points, and the Nasdaq Composite rose 192.29

points, or 0.98%, to 19,764.89. The Dow Jones Industrial Average

climbed 66.69 points, or 0.16%, to 42,906.95.

After a solid run since the November presidential election,

Wall Street's rally hit a bump this month, especially after the

U.S. Federal Reserve forecast just two 25-basis-point rate

reductions for 2025 - down from its September view of four cuts

- and raised its annual inflation outlook.

This included a selloff last Wednesday triggered by the U.S.

Federal Reserve signaling a slower rate-cut pace.

Chris Zaccarelli, chief investment officer at Northlight

Asset Management, noted that while some course correction has

occurred in recent days, as interest-rate expectations have been

modified by investors, many of the same trends remain in place,

including tech and tech-enabled stocks finding favor.

"We're really seeing a microcosm today of what we've seen

all year long, and the trends are back in place despite what

we've seen in the last couple of weeks where things bounced

around a little bit," Zaccarelli said.

As well as major benchmark gains, eight of the 11 S&P

sectors finished higher on Monday, led by communication services

, which climbed 1.4%.

Markets are also entering a historically strong period for

U.S. stocks. Since 1969, the last five trading days of the year,

combined with the first two of the following year, have yielded

an average S&P 500 gain of 1.3% - a period known as the "Santa

Claus Rally", according to the Stock Trader's Almanac.

Northlight's Zaccarelli said he believed conditions were

right for such a rally, as this year's gains would likely mean

investors would hold on to positions as opposed to selling and

booking losses which they can use for tax purposes.

Qualcomm's ( QCOM ) shares rose 3.5% after a jury found its

central processors are properly licensed under an agreement with

UK-based Arm Holdings. Shares of Arm, which has vowed to

seek a fresh trial, fell 4%.

Walmart ( WMT ) dropped 2% after the U.S. consumer finance

watchdog accused the retail giant and workforce payments company

Branch Messenger of forcing more than a million delivery drivers

into using accounts that cost them more than $10 million in junk

fees.

Eli Lilly ( LLY ) gained 3.7% after the U.S. Food and Drug

Administration approved the drugmaker's weight-loss treatment,

Zepbound, for obstructive sleep apnea. Shares of sleep apnea

device makers ResMed ( RMD ) and Inspire Medical ( INSP ) fell

2.6% and 0.1% respectively.

Nordstrom's ( JWN ) shares declined 1.5% after the

department store chain's founding family and Mexican retailer El

Puerto de Liverpool agreed to take the company

private.