**Market Highlights – January 7, 2026**
On January 7, 2026, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell by 466 points, or 0.94%, closing below 49,000, while the S&P 500 and Russell 2000 also declined by 0.34% and 0.30%, respectively. In contrast, the Nasdaq increased by 0.16%. This market movement followed a record closing high the previous day.
Alphabet Inc. (GOOGL) became the world’s second-largest company by market capitalization, overtaking Apple Inc. (AAPL), after gaining 4.5% in shares due to a positive analyst note regarding its potential as a leading AI platform. However, it still trails NVIDIA (NVDA) by several hundred billion dollars in market value.
The Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) for November reported 7.15 million job openings, falling short of the expected 7.6 million and marking the lowest level since September 2025. The accommodations and food services sector lost 148,000 openings, while construction gained 90,000. Job quits rose to 2%, indicating a tightening labor market. Economic updates include the ISM Services index rising to 54.4%, but factory orders for October decreased by 1.3%.
