US STOCKS-Wall Street mixed as AI-driven rally cools, investors assess labor data

By Purvi Agarwal and Nikhil Sharma

Jan 7 (Reuters) - Wall Street's main indexes were mixed on Wednesday, with the S&P 500 and the Dow coming off their intraday record highs after rallying in the previous two sessions, while investors assessed numerous economic datasets.

At 10:09 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI fell 145.00 points, or 0.30%, to 49,317.08, the S&P 500 .SPX gained 0.78 points, or 0.01%, to 6,945.60, and the Nasdaq Composite .IXIC gained 53.51 points, or 0.23%, to 23,600.68.

The Dow slipped from its record high and remained about 1.5% below the historic 50,000 level, while modest moves in the S&P 500 kept it at a record high, leaving the benchmark 0.7% shy of the 7,000-point peak.

Wall Street surged on Tuesday amid renewed enthusiasm for artificial-intelligence-linked stocks.

U.S. job openings fell more than expected in November after rising marginally in October, while a separate ADP report showed that private payrolls increased less than expected in December.

Kim Forrest, chief investment officer at Bokeh Capital Partners, said that investors could stay cautious over the next couple of days, avoiding any outsized bets until the key nonfarm payrolls report is released on Friday.

Healthcare .SPXHC extended its gains on Wednesday, up 1.1% to hit a record high, boosted by a 4% rise in heavyweight drugmaker Eli Lilly LLY.N. The Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday that Eli Lilly was in advanced talks to buy Ventyx Biosciences VTYX.O for more than $1 billion.

Memory chipmakers that had surged in the previous session on the prospect of chip shortages leading to price increases eased. SanDisk SNDK.O and Western Digital WDC.O fell 2.6% and 10.2% after climbing 27.5% and 10%, respectively, on Tuesday.

Materials .SPLRCM also pulled back, down 1.6%, after climbing over 2% in the previous session.

Wall Street's three main indexes appear to have started 2026 on a positive note, after marking their third consecutive year of double-digit gains in 2025.

Markets will also keep an eye on geopolitical developments, including developments in Venezuela and the use of the country's oil resources, following the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro over the weekend.

U.S. President Donald Trump said the U.S. would refine and sell up to 50 million barrels of crude stuck in the Latin American nation.

The U.S. said it has seized a Russian-flagged, Venezuela-linked tanker on Wednesday, marking Washington's efforts to dictate oil flows in America's backyard and force Caracas' socialist government to become its ally.

The White House said on Tuesday that Trump is discussing options for acquiring Greenland, including potential use of the U.S. military.

Among other stocks, Strategy MSTR.O rose 1.5% before the bell after MSCI dropped a plan to exclude the bitcoin hoarder and other crypto treasury firms from its indexes.

First Solar FSLR.O fell 8.2% after Jefferies downgraded the solar panel maker's rating to "hold" from "buy", citing recent project cancellations and margin pressures.

Declining issues outnumbered advancers by a 1.56-to-1 ratio on the NYSE, and by a 1.19-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.

The S&P 500 posted 24 new 52-week highs and 8 new lows, while the Nasdaq Composite recorded 62 new highs and 33 new lows.