Apple's market cap exceeds 3 trillion!

    Apple shares rose 2.5% on Monday to a record high and reached a market value of $3 trillion, becoming the first U.S. company to reach that level and quadrupling its market value in less than four years. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 246.76 points or 0.6% to close at 36,585.06, a record high. The S&P 500 closed up 0.6% at 4,796.56, another record high. The Nasdaq led gains, rising 1.2% to 15,832.80.

 

    "It's been an optimistic start to the year and our outlook for 2022," said Tom Hainlin, global investment strategist at US Bank Wealth Management. The outlook for 2020 remains moderately optimistic, arguing that the economy and corporate profits will support stock prices, at least for the first half of the year."

    Still, the uncertainty about the outbreak will continue into the beginning of the year. The Omicron variance has caused thousands of flight cancellations over the holiday period and some businesses and schools are also considering temporary closures. In addition, several major Wall Street banks have asked employees to work from home for the first few weeks of January. Inflation and monetary policy are also key themes in 2022, as investors expect the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates several times over the coming year to help suppress price increases for consumers. However, some insiders said that high-interest rates may not be a bad thing, because it will show the strength of the economy, but the stock market must first overcome the threshold of raising interest rates.