U.S. stocks moved higher on Friday as Wall Street tried to shake off a volatile start to the new year.

The S&P 500 rose 1.2%, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average
advanced 319 points, or about 0.9%. The Nasdaq Composite
gained about 1.6%.

Tech stocks were a bright spot for the market on Friday. Chip giant Nvidia climbed 4%, while server maker Super Micro Computer jumped 6%. Tesla rose 4% to lead the consumer discretionary group.

Friday's move came off a choppy trading session on Thursday that saw stocks close lower after a morning rally. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq have fallen for five straight trading sessions, their longest losing streak since April of last year.

The recent weakness for equities means that "Santa Claus" rally, in which stocks gain in the final five trading days of one year and the first two of the next, has failed to materialize. However, many Wall Street strategists and portfolio managers are still optimistic about the market in 2025.

"The secular growth drivers that have been driving earnings growth and market gains over the last two years, I think they're still on strong footing and will continue to drive those earnings gains," Jeremiah Buckley, portfolio manager at Janus Henderson Investors, said on CNBC's "Squawk on the Street."

Stocks are on pace to close out the week with losses even with Friday's gains. The 30-stock Dow and the S&P 500 are lower by around 0.6% and 0.5%, respectively. The Nasdaq Composite has dropped 0.7%.

News out of Washington, D.C., was spurring some individual stock moves on Friday. Shares of U.S. Steel fell 5% after President Joe Biden said he would block the proposed acquisition by Nippon Steel. Booze and beer stocks declined after the U.S. surgeon general issued an advisory on cancer risk related to alcohol consumption.(Cay) Newsmaker23

Source: CNBC