The final trading day of the Biden era is set for sharp gains on Friday, as optimism about President-elect Trump's inauguration and subsequent policy changes coincides with impressive corporate earnings and a more optimistic outlook for interest rates consistent.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) rose 1.1%, while the S&P 500 (^GSPC) gained 1.2%, ending losses for the major gauges. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index (^IXIC) rose more than 1.7% as shares of Nvidia (NVDA) and Tesla (TSLA) rebounded.

Stocks were on track for a sharp weekly gain after Wednesday's sharp gains. On Friday, the 10-year Treasury yield (^TNX) fell back to around 4.6%.

Here are some stocks on Yahoo Finance's Hot Stocks page during early trading Friday.

Yuan(Mehta): Shares of the social media platform were up more than half a percent on Friday morning after the U.S. Supreme Court upheld a law that could have resulted in rival short-video app TikTok being banned in the United States. The TikTok ban will take effect on Sunday, January 19, unless Chinese parent company ByteDance divests from the platform.

Novo Nordisk (non-governmental organization): The pharmaceutical company has come under pressure after some of its drugs were included in a 2027 Medicare price negotiation list. Novo Nordisk's (NVO) GLP-1 weight loss drugs Ozempic and Wegovy are among them. Shares fell more than 4%.

Intel(international trade center): Shares of the troubled tech giant soared 8% on Friday afternoon as speculation circulated online that the company had become a takeover target, according to a Friday report from SemiAccurate. Intel stock has lost more than half its value over the past year.

Coin Library (coin): The country’s largest cryptocurrency platform has once again been boosted by a surge in Bitcoin prices. The price of Bitcoin (BTC-USD) topped $100,000 again on Friday following reports that President-elect Donald Trump plans to issue an executive order to elevate cryptocurrencies as a policy priority.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released its second round of drug negotiation targets, a list of 15 drugs under Medicare Part D, including Novo Nordisk's (NVO) blockbuster, Yahoo Finance's Anjalee Khemlani reports Drug GLP-1.

Novo shares fell 4% on Friday after the news broke.

Diabetes drug Ozempic and weight loss drug Wegovy topped the list, along with others such as Merck & Co.'s (MRK) diabetes drug Janumet.

Click here to learn more about the next round of drug price negotiations.

It is unclear whether the incoming Trump administration will adhere to the list and procedures or make changes after taking office on January 20.

Novo Nordisk currently holds 55% of the GLP-1 market, earning $50 billion in revenue from the two drugs in the first three quarters of last year alone.

Yahoo Finance's Alexis Keenan and Daniel Howley report that the U.S. Supreme Court upheld a law banning TikTok from the U.S. starting Sunday unless it is sold To owners not controlled by foreign adversaries.

Friday's ruling creates new uncertainty for Chinese apps used by 170 million Americans, but could be a long-term boon for rivals like Meta (META) for social media ad revenue.

The court sided with the U.S. government's argument that ties between TikTok parent ByteDance and Beijing posed a national security threat that gave Congress the authority to require the company's sale.

TikTok argued that it was entitled to First Amendment protection and that its proprietary algorithm was in fact a form of editorial expression that qualified as speech.

The court's ruling could leave TikTok's fate in the hands of Donald Trump, who has pledged to "save TikTok" and asked the court to suspend the divestment deadline. The president-elect will take office on January 20, a day after the ban takes effect.

Read more here.

A resurgence in technology stocks drove gains on Wall Street on Friday as investors embraced a week of favorable inflation data and impressive corporate earnings, shifting sentiment back toward optimism as the Federal Reserve considers its rate-setting policy.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) rose 0.7%, while the S&P 500 (^GSPC) gained 1%, with all major gauges in the red. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index (^IXIC) rose more than 1.6% as shares of Nvidia (NVDA) and Tesla (TSLA) rebounded.

Markets turned optimistic as investors assessed big bank earnings and inflation data in recent days, which reignited bets on rate cuts. Stocks were on track for a sharp weekly gain after Wednesday's sharp gains, while the 10-year Treasury yield (^TNX) fell back to 4.6% on Friday.

Housing starts increased in December, driven by a pickup in multifamily construction.

Census Bureau data showed housing grew 15.8% in December to an annual rate of 1.49 million units, higher than economists' expectations for an annual increase of 1.32 million units.

Single-family housing starts increased slightly. Construction volume rose 3.3% to an annualized rate of 1.05 million units, the strongest pace since February 2024. Meanwhile, multifamily construction increased nearly 62%.

"Housing starts surged at the end of the year, but that doesn't mean the country is out of the woods when it comes to the housing sector," FWDBONDS chief economist Christopher Rupkey wrote after the release.

"The country still doesn't have enough housing and residential construction remains historically depressed," the economist added.

So far, new construction in 2024 is the slowest since 2019, according to Bloomberg. Despite the increase in construction, builders are still facing rising mortgage rates. Freddie Mac said mortgage rates rose to 7.04% this week, the highest level since May 2024. Home loan rates tend to track U.S. Treasury yields, which have been climbing following strong jobs data.