The S&P 500 ( SP500 ) on Friday soared 4.66% for the week to end at 5,995.54 points, posting gains in four out of five sessions. Its accompanying SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust ( NYSEARCA: SPY ) jumped 4.75% for the week. One of the most pivotal weeks of the year turned out to be records galore for Wall Street. The benchmark S&P ( SP500 ) took its tally of all-time closing highs to a half century for 2024, while also smashing past the 6,000 points level in a historic first. Though the gauge was unable to close above that mark, it was still on track to post its shortest gap between 1,000-point milestones on record. As if that weren't enough, the index posted its best weekly advance in just over a year. Meanwhile, the venerable Dow Jones Industrial Average ( DJI ) notched its 41st and 42nd record close of the year, while also taking out the 44,000 points level for the first time ever. The blue-chip index posted its best weekly advance in just over a year as well. Moreover, its advance on Wednesday was its best intraday performance since November 10, 2022. Market participants began the week cautiously on Monday, as they geared up for the culmination of the U.S. presidential election on Tuesday and the penultimate Federal Reserve interest rate decision of the year on Thursday. On Election Day, the S&P ( SP500 ), Dow ( DJI ) and fellow major index the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite ( COMP:IND ) rallied ahead of the count. Then, as election night unfolded, and it started to become clear that former President Donald Trump was going to win, the so-called "Trump trade" gripped markets. U.S. stock futures swelled overnight, while assets that were seen to be benefiting by a second Trump administration saw a boost. The dollar soared, amid expectations that the greenback would rise in a low-tax and high-tariff environment. Bitcoin ( BTC-USD ) undoubtedly saw the most dramatic reaction, smashing past the $75K level. It has been embraced by Trump in his campaign, who this year became the first-ever major U.S. party nominee to accept donations in bitcoin ( BTC-USD ) and other cryptocurrencies. By the early hours of Wednesday, Trump, a Republican, had secured the 270 electoral votes needed to win against Democratic opponent Vice President Kamala Harris. The GOP also won the Senate, while the House remains undecided, though a red sweep seems most likely. The Trump trade lifted off in regular trading hours, with the S&P ( SP500 ) and the Dow ( DJI ) eventually notching their best post-election intraday climbs ever. The latter popped more than 1,500 points. "A decisive U.S. election outcome requires a rethink of the global macroeconomic outlook, as our baseline, as well as most others, has incorporated an assumption of policy continuity. Within this framework that we have been pushing back against, most central banks and private forecasters project inflation returning quickly to 2% almost everywhere with growth proceeding at a trend-like pace," JPMorgan's Bruce Kasman said. On Thursday, the focus shifted to the Fed. The central bank delivered a 25 basis point rate cut as widely expected, following which chair Jerome Powell said both the labor market and inflation was normalizing . Traders took heart from Powell's remarks, and his praise of the resilience of the economy, and continued to be in a buying mood. That spilled into Friday, which gave enough of a boost to the S&P ( SP500 ) and Dow ( DJI ) to take out their historic milestones. Turning to the weekly performance of the S&P 500 ( SP500 ) sectors, all 11 ended in the green, led by a nearly 8% climb in Consumer Discretionary and a 6% rise in Energy. Technology added more than 5%. See below a breakdown of the performance of the sectors as well as their accompanying SPDR Select Sector ETFs from November 1 close to November 8 close: #1: Consumer Discretionary +7.62% , and the Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR ETF ( XLY ) +7.51% . #2: Energy +6.16% , and the Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund ETF ( XLE ) +6.50% . #3: Industrials +5.93% , and the Industrial Select Sector SPDR Fund ETF ( XLI ) +6.03% . #4: Financials +5.53% , and the Financial Select Sector SPDR Fund ETF ( XLF ) +5.47% . #5: Information Technology +5.44% , and the Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund ETF ( XLK ) +5.92% . #6: Communication Services +3.72% , and the Communication Services Select Sector SPDR Fund ( XLC ) +4.09% . #7: Real Estate +2.68% , and the Real Estate Select Sector SPDR Fund ETF ( XLRE ) +2.74% . #8: Health Care +1.57% , and the Health Care Select Sector SPDR Fund ETF ( XLV ) +1.65% . #9: Materials +1.46% , and the Materials Select Sector SPDR Fund ETF ( XLB ) +1.44% . #10: Consumer Staples +1.20% , and the Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR Fund ETF ( XLP ) +0.84% . #11: Utilities +1.19% , and the Utilities Select Sector SPDR Fund ETF ( XLU ) +1.34% . For investors looking to track the benchmark S&P 500 ( SP500 ), here are some exchange-traded funds of interest: ( VOO ), ( IVV ), ( RSP ), ( SSO ), ( UPRO ), ( SH ), ( SDS ), and ( SPXU ). For investors looking into the future of what's happening, take a look at the Seeking Alpha Catalyst Watch to see next week's breakdown of actionable events that stand out . More on the markets Fed Likely To Pause In December As Pre-Election Support Ends Is Now A Good Time To Buy Stocks With High P/E Ratios? Lessons From 2012 Fed In Line: Markets Reiterate Strong Buy On Stocks And Bonds Reaction Roundup: SA analysts, experts weigh in on Fed's quarter-point rate cut Goldman Sachs shifts to slower view on timing of Fed interest rate cuts
