On Thursday, November 27, 2025, U.S. stock markets, including the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and Nasdaq, were closed in observance of the Thanksgiving holiday. Despite the market closure for regular trading, the underlying market sentiment from the previous session indicated a continued focus on expectations for a Federal Reserve interest rate cut in December, coupled with persistent investor optimism surrounding artificial intelligence (AI). This narrative has been a key driver for global markets, which saw gains fueled by these rate-cut hopes. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) closed at 47427.12, up 314.67 (0.6679%) points today, reflecting this positive momentum. Dow Futures (YM=F) saw a slight dip, closing at 47489.00, down 1.00 (-0.0021%) points.
Key performers among Dow components reflected this positive sentiment. The biggest gainers included aerospace giant Boeing (BA), which rose by 2.46%. Retail behemoth Walmart (WMT) also saw significant appreciation, climbing 2.07%. Technology leader Microsoft (MSFT) continued its strong performance, adding 2.04%. Other notable gainers were Goldman Sachs (GS) up 1.71% and JPMorgan Chase (JPM) increasing by 1.64%, suggesting broad-based strength across various sectors.
Conversely, some Dow components experienced declines. Software giant Salesforce (CRM) was the biggest laggard, falling 2.51%. Pharmaceutical company Merck & Co. (MRK) also faced headwinds, decreasing by 0.73%. Industrial conglomerate 3M (MMM) saw a modest decline of 0.43%. Other companies experiencing slight pullbacks included Honeywell (HON) down 0.43% and IBM (IBM) with a 0.41% loss.
Ed Liston is a senior contributing editor at TheStockMarketWatch.com. An active market watcher and investor, Ed guides an independent team of experienced analysts and writes for multiple stock trader publications.