US stocks climb in quiet session as November ends on a softer note

US stocks advanced in the final trading session of November, although the post-Thanksgiving shortened session kept trading volumes well below average. The S&P 500 rose 0.45%, the Nasdaq gained 0.39% and the Dow added just over 0.60%. Communication services led the advance, while healthcare lagged. Large-cap tech delivered a mixed performance: Microsoft rose 0.70%, Amazon 0.90%, Alphabet 1.60%, Meta 0.70%, Broadcom 1.30%, and Tesla 1.30%. Nvidia slipped 0.80% and Apple was little changed.

Trading was briefly disrupted earlier in the day by a technical outage at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. Looking to the week ahead, investors will turn their attention to delayed official publications and fresh private-sector surveys. For November, the S&P 500 is currently down 0.20% and on track for its first monthly decline since April. The Dow is broadly flat, while the Nasdaq is more than 2% lower, set to break a seven-month winning streak amid early-month concerns over stretched artificial intelligence (AI)-related valuations.

European stocks edged slightly higher on Friday, extending the week’s solid gains as expectations of further monetary easing from the Federal Reserve (Fed) continued to support sentiment across major markets. The STOXX 50 rose 0.20% to 5 666, while the STOXX 600 gained 0.30% to 577. Despite the positive weekly performance, the Eurozone’s benchmark still ended November 0.60% lower. London’s FTSE 100 advanced 0.28%, and Germany’s DAX gained 0.25%.

Technology shares helped lift European indices, with ASML, SAP, Infineon, and Prosus rising between 0.70% and 1.50%. Consumer discretionary also strengthened, led by LVMH up 1.40%, while Volkswagen and Stellantis climbed 1.30% and 2%, respectively, setting a firmer tone for automakers.

Across Asia, markets looked set to close a difficult November on a steadier footing. Renewed expectations of an imminent US rate cut eased valuation concerns and extended the four-month rally in Treasuries. Japan’s Nikkei inched up 0.17% to 502 253.91, the Shanghai Composite also gained 0.17%, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng slipped 0.19% to 25 896.74.

South African equities were mixed on Friday, breaking from the prior sessions’ downward streak. The All Share Index rose 0.35% to 110 958.51, while the JSE Top 40 gained 0.36%. Resources outperformed with a strong 2.93% advance, whereas Industrials and the Financial 15 slipped 1.36% and 0.08%, respectively. The rand strengthened to 17.13 against the dollar, 0.11% firmer and also edged higher against the pound and euro.

In commodities, platinum reached a six-week high, climbing above $1 687 per ounce, its strongest level since October 2025. The metal has gained 4.30% over the past four weeks. Gold advanced by 1.24% to $4 208.94 per ounce, while silver surged by 5.15%. Brent crude edged marginally lower, down 0.02% at $62.33 per barrel.