Wednesday, December 31, 2025
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S&P 500, Nasdaq, Dow waver after surprise GDP growth trims rate-cut bets


US stocks wobbled on Tuesday after fresh data showed surprisingly strong growth in the US economy over the summer, leading investors to trim bets on near-term interest-rate cuts.

The S&P 500 (^GSPC) and tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) both sat just above the flatline, while the blue-chip benchmark Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) hovered just below. Overall, the major US gauges flipped between small gains and losses after scoring their third win in a row to start the week.

Gold (GC=F) and silver (SI=F) continued to pick up steam through Tuesday morning, adding to a stunning rally that has the precious metals on pace for their best year in more than four decades. At the same time, copper (HG=F) crested a fresh record above $12,000 per ton.

Tuesday brought a last gasp of data ahead of the Christmas holiday. Wall Street got a first look at third quarter GDP, which showed the US economy grew at a 4.3% annualized rate in the quarter. That was much higher than the 3.3% expected, a potential sign of continued economic resilience. The shutdown-delayed report also found that consumer spending remained strong over the summer.

After the release, traders pared bets on a rate cut in January. Markets now price in 85% odds of the Federal Reserve standing pat, up from 80% a day ago and 75% last week. That said, a plurality of wagers remain on two cuts by the end of next year.

Wall Street stocks have rallied back in recent days, after last week’s data — including a surprise drop in inflation and lukewarm look at labor market — left bets on 2026 interest-rate cuts mostly intact.

Tuesday morning’s read on December consumer confidence from the Conference Board will also be in focus, given one of 2025’s defining narratives centers on the K-shaped economy that has emerged among American shoppers — one that also showed up in the GDP report.

On the corporate front, Novo Nordisk’s (NVO) US-listed stock jumped in premarket after the Danish drugmaker got official US approval to market its Wegovy weight-loss pill.

Looking ahead, US stock markets will wrap up trading early on Wednesday and be closed all day Thursday for the Christmas holiday.

LIVE 10 updates

  • Jake Conley

    Cloud software maker ServiceNow is set to acquire cybersecurity startup Armis in a $7.75 billion deal

    Cloud software maker ServiceNow (NOW) has reached an agreement to acquire the cybersecurity company Armis in a $7.75 billion deal, the company announced Tuesday morning.

    The transaction, an all-cash deal that ServiceNow said it will finance with both cash on hand and debt, will be ServiceNow’s largest acquisition to date, according to Bloomberg. Shares in ServiceNow fell by roughly 2.6% after the announcement.

    The acquisition is intended to broaden ServiceNow’s cybersecurity offerings in its cloud products, the company said in its press release. Armis’ security offerings will allow enterprise customers in industries with “cyber-physical” assets, such as healthcare and manufacturing, to get a more real-time assessment of potential threats, ServiceNow said.

    “In the agentic AI era, intelligent trust and governance that span any cloud, any asset, any AI system, and any device are non-negotiable if companies want to scale AI for the long-term,” ServiceNow president, COO, and chief product officer Amit Zavery said.

    “Together with Armis, we will deliver an industry-defining strategic cybersecurity shield for real-time, end-to-end proactive protection across all technology estates.”

  • Jake Conley

    US stocks open Tuesday on mixed footing after GDP data shows stronger-than-expected growth

    US stocks opened Tuesday’s trading on unstable footing after GDP data showed stronger-than-expected growth in the US economy through the summer, leading investors to pull back from bets on near-term cuts from the Federal Reserve.

    The blue chip-heavy Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) fell by roughly 0.2% in the most volatile move of the morning, while the S&P 500 (^GSPC) and tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) ticked up by less than 0.1% each following the third win in a row for US stocks to start the week.

    Copper (HG=F) set a fresh record on Tuesday morning, crossing $12,000 per ton for the first time, while gold (GC=F) and silver (SI=F) continued to pick up steam, adding onto a stunning rally that has the precious metals on pace for their best year in more than four decades.

    Before the opening bell on Tuesday, investors got a reading on third quarter GDP, which showed the US economy grew at a 4.3% annualized rate in the quarter, above the expected 3.3% growth. Predictions of a rate cut at the January Federal Reserve meeting fell in the aftermath, with traders pricing in only a 13% chance.

  • US GDP unexpectedly accelerates in Q3, showing consumer resilience

    US gross domestic product (GDP) unexpectedly accelerated in the third quarter, coming in at an annualized pace of 4.3%, the Bureau of Economic Analysis reported on Tuesday.

    Economists had expected the initial reading of annualized growth to slow to a 3% pace from last quarter’s 3.8% reading, according to S&P Global Market Intelligence.

    The reading showed resilience in consumer spending and exports, though investments decreased, the BEA said. Imports, which are subtracted from the calculation of GDP, also declined.

    Economists have noted that the economy has looked increasingly K-shaped, with higher-income households propping up spending while lower-income households become more financially stressed.

    The advance GDP reading was originally scheduled to be released on Oct. 30, with a second estimate scheduled for Nov. 26, but the data was delayed due to the government shutdown.

    Read more: What is GDP, and why does it matter?

  • Why Oura CEO doesn’t think OpenAI’s device will kill the iPhone

    Tom Hale, the CEO of Oura, which makes the popular health tracking ring, doesn’t think a new hardware device from OpenAI (OPAI.PVT) will make the Apple (AAPL) iPhone obsolete, he told Yahoo Finance’s Brian Sozzi. Hale said it would have a long way to go to drive mass appeal.

    “We’ve all had [Amazon] Alexa devices in our lives, and they’re fascinating, … but it’s also kind of latent in the sort of bandwidth for information,” Hale said in a new episode of Yahoo Finance’s Opening Bid Unfiltered podcast. “I’m fascinated by conversations that you have with OpenAI or any of the models like Gemini. … At the same time, it’s not the perfect user interface for every kind of computing activity you might consult.”

    Hale added that he doesn’t think the iPhone will go away, just as the iPhone didn’t fully replace laptops or desktops.

    “It’s just another form factor for computing,” he said. “I think that’s where the device goes, and I think that we’ll have a cloud of wearables that’ll be tuned to whatever your use case is.”

    Read more here.

  • Jenny McCall

    Good morning. Here’s what’s happening today.

  • Jenny McCall

    Dollar’s worst slide since 2017 has further to go, options show

    The US dollar is on track to hit its weakest annual performance since 2017, according to the Bloomberg Dollar Index.

    Bloomberg News reports:

    Read more here.

  • Copper hits $12,000 for first time as tariff trade upends market

    Bloomberg reports:

    Read more here.

  • Jenny McCall

    Premarket trending tickers: AST SpaceMobile, CACI, and Carnival Corp.

    AST SpaceMobile (ASTS) stock fell 3% before the bell on Tuesday, following a surge on Monday. The Starlink rival’s stock closed 14% up on Monday. AST’s gains follow President Trump’s signing of an executive order last week to secure America’s “space superiority.”

    CACI (CACI) stock edged higher on Tuesday, rising 1% during premarket trading, following the announcement on Monday that the US defense contractor will acquire space technology provider ​ARKA Group from funds managed by ‌Blackstone Tactical Opportunities for $2.6 billion.

    Carnival Corporation (CCL) stock rose 1% before the bell on Tuesday, following the cruise liner posting positive Q4 earnings results on Friday, beating Wall Street expectations and resuming dividend payments.

  • Jenny McCall

    Huntington stock rises as company wins US Navy contract

    Military shipbuilder Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) saw its stock rise 4% during premarket trading on Tuesday and closed 5% up in the prior day’s trading after the US Navy announced it had selected Huntington to design and build a new class of warship.

    “We look forward to supporting the Navy on this critical program,” said Chris Kastner, HII president and CEO.

    President Trump also said on Monday that he had approved a plan for the US Navy to construct new “Trump-class” warships to serve as flagships for the nation’s naval fleet.

    Rivals to Huntington saw their stock close higher yesterday, such as General Dynamics (GD), which saw its shares rise almost 2% on Monday, and Australian company Austal (ASB.AX), which has a major presence in the US, saw its shares close 6% higher on Tuesday.

  • Novo Nordisk wins US approval for weight-loss pill, plans to offer it to cash-paying buyers from day one

    Shares of Novo Nordisk jumped before the bell on Tuesday after the FDA approved its weight-loss pill on Monday.

    The green light for oral Wegovy gives the Danish drugmaker a boost as looks to claw back ground lost to US rival Eli Lilly (LLY). Novo has seen a rocky 2025 of sliding shares, profit warnings, and slowing sales of its injectable Wegovy amid intensifying competition, including from compounded versions.

    Reuters reports:

    Read more here.



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