Opening Comment — Wednesday, January 07, 2026
DJIA: 49,462.08, up 484.90
S&P 500: 6,944.82, up 42.77
NASDAQ: 23,547.17, up 151.35
Stocks lower ahead of PMI data
Stock futures are mostly lower Wednesday morning ahead of the Institute for Supply Management’s (ISM’s) services purchasing managers’ index (PMI) for December. Investors will also be looking for the November Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS), along with December’s ADP employment change report. As of 7:18 AM ET, the Dow is little changed, while the S&P 500 is down 0.1%. The Nasdaq 100 is falling 0.2% relative to fair value on the GLOBEX.
U.S. equities were higher on Tuesday as S&P Global’s finalized services and composite PMIs for December were both revised slightly downward to levels still consistent with moderate expansion. The Dow was up 1.0% and reached a new record closing level of 49462.08, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite rose 0.7%. The S&P 500 increased 0.6% and set a new record closing level of 6944.82, with nine of 11 sectors finishing in positive territory. The Materials sector was the top performer, rising 2.0%, while the Energy sector was the bottom performer, falling 2.8%.
On the data front, the Mortgage Banker Association’s gauge of mortgage applications increased by 0.3% for the week ending January 2. The ADP employment change report for December is expected to show private nonfarm job gains of 50,000, versus the prior month’s decline of 32,000. Meanwhile, ISM’s December services PMI and the prices paid component are expected to register 52.2 and 64.9, respectively, versus the prior month’s 52.6 and 65.4, respectively. The November JOLTS is forecasted to show job openings of 7.65 million, versus the prior month’s 7.67 million. October’s factory orders are expected to have decreased 1.2% month-over-month (MOM) versus the prior month’s increase of 0.2%. Meanwhile, October’s finalized durable goods orders are expected to show a 2.2% MOM decrease, unchanged from the prior reading. The Department of Energy’s measure of crude oil inventories is expected to have decreased by 1.0 million barrels for the week ending January 2 versus the prior week’s decrease of 1.9 million barrels.
Across the pond, European stocks are mostly lower in mid-day trading as Germany’s preliminary Consumer Price Index (CPI) for December came in softer than expected, showing little change MOM and rising by 1.8% year-over-year (YOY). The country’s unemployment change came in lower than projected in December, though the unemployment claims rate remained steady at 6.3%. German retail sales unexpectedly fell in November, decreasing by 0.6% MOM and 1.8% YOY. Meanwhile, French consumer confidence edged higher in December, in line with expectations. The U.K.’s construction PMI for December posted a smaller-than-expected increase, remaining in contractionary territory, while Germany’s construction PMI rose, moving just into expansionary territory. The eurozone’s preliminary December CPI cooled as expected to 2.0% YOY, while the core measure eased to 2.3% YOY.
Overnight in Asia, stocks were mixed following Japan’s finalized December composite and services PMIs from S&P Global being revised slightly lower yet remaining in expansionary territory. Meanwhile, Australia’s CPI cooled more than expected in November, decelerating to 3.4% YOY. The country’s building approvals increased by 15.2% MOM in November.
In FOREX trading, the U.S. dollar is little changed ahead of today’s U.S. labor market data.
Over in the commodity pits, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil is 0.7% lower at $56.76/barrel despite today’s expected decrease in reported U.S. crude oil inventories.
In the metals complex, gold is 1.0% lower at $4,451.31/ounce.