U.S. stock markets closed higher on December 20, 2024, with the S&P 500 rising by 62.83 points, or 1.07%, to finish at 5,929.91. The Dow Jones gained 501.52 points, or 1.18%, closing at 42,843.76, while the Nasdaq increased by 175.87 points, or 0.91%, to end at 19,548.64. This rally followed a cooler-than-expected inflation report and supportive comments from Federal Reserve officials, which alleviated concerns regarding interest rate hikes. Despite this daily gain, all three major indices recorded weekly losses, with the Dow down 2.58%, the S&P 500 down 2.95%, and the Nasdaq down 3.56%, marking the largest weekly declines since 2020 for the S&P 500 and Nasdaq. The week had been challenging for investors, triggered by the Federal Reserve's recent rate cut and its cautious outlook for future rate adjustments, with projections indicating only two rate cuts in 2025. The market's performance was further impacted by heavy selling from foreign institutional investors (FIIs) amid rising dollar and bond yields, leading to a broader sell-off in equities.