Opening Comment — Wednesday, December 24, 2025
DJIA: 48,442.41, up 79.73
S&P 500: 6,909.79, up 31.30
NASDAQ: 23,561.84, up 133.01
Stocks flat before jobless claims data
Stock futures are mostly unchanged Wednesday morning ahead of today’s shortened trading session as investors look forward to data on initial and continuing jobless claims. As of 7:17 AM ET, the Dow is decreasing 0.1%, while the S&P 500 is flat. The Nasdaq 100 is also little changed relative to fair value on the GLOBEX.
U.S. equities were higher on Tuesday as third-quarter gross domestic product (GDP) growth came in at a 4.3% annualized pace, while consumer spending came in stronger than expected at a 3.5% annualized pace. Meanwhile, the preliminary reading of durable goods orders for October fell more than projected. November's industrial production rose following a decline in October. Consumer confidence declined more than anticipated in December, dropping to 89.1 from the prior month’s upwardly revised 92.9. The Dow was up 0.2%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite rose 0.6%. The S&P 500 increased 0.5% and set a new record closing level of 6909.79, with seven of 11 sectors finishing in positive territory. The Communication Services sector was the top performer, rising 1.0%, while the Consumer Staples sector was the bottom performer, falling 0.4%.
On the data front, the Mortgage Banker Association’s gauge of mortgage applications decreased by 5.0% for the week ending December 19 versus the prior week’s decrease of 3.8%. Initial jobless claims for the week ending December 20 are expected to come in at 224,000, similar to prior week’s reading, while continuing claims are expected to come in at 1.900 million for the week ending December 13, slightly up from the prior week’s 1.897 million.
Across the pond, European stocks are mixed in mid-day trading following the French government passing a budget stopgap as Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu aims to get a full spending bill with a significant deficit reduction through quickly. The Netherlands’ third-quarter GDP grew by 0.5% quarter-over-quarter, up from 0.3% in the previous quarter.
Overnight in Asia, stocks were mixed as South Korea’s consumer confidence fell in December. Japan’s Services Producer Price Index rose 2.7% year-over-year in November, matching the pace of growth seen in the previous month. Meanwhile, the country’s finalized composite leading index was revised down to 109.8 in October.
In FOREX trading, the U.S. dollar is slightly lower as investors await U.S. unemployment claims data.
Over in the commodity pits, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil is 0.5% higher at $58.65/barrel.
In the metals complex, gold is 0.2% higher at $4,491.36/ounce following a weakening U.S. dollar.