U.S. stock markets have resumed normal trading hours today, Friday, December 26, 2025, following the Christmas Day holiday, with investors keen to extend the bullish momentum that closed out the shortened trading week. Major indices ended Wednesday's session at fresh record highs, fueled by robust artificial intelligence (AI) sector performance and encouraging economic data. As markets opened this morning, premarket futures indicated a mixed to slightly subdued start, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) futures pointing marginally lower, while S&P 500 (SPX) futures also dipped fractionally. Nasdaq 100 (NDX) futures, however, showed a slight uptick, signaling continued investor interest in technology and growth stocks.
This Friday marks the second day of the traditional "Santa Claus Rally" period, a seasonal phenomenon that historically sees positive market movements in the final trading days of December and the first two of January. Traders are closely watching to see if this trend will hold, especially after the strong close to the previous session.
Major Index Performance and Premarket Activity
The last trading session on Wednesday, December 24, saw all three major U.S. stock indexes climb to new all-time closing highs for the fifth consecutive day. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) advanced 0.6%, or 288.75 points, to close at 48,731.16. The S&P 500 (SPX) gained 0.3% to finish at 6,932.05, also achieving a new all-time closing high, and even touched a new intraday record of 6,937.32. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (IXIC) rose 0.2%, closing at 23,613.31, largely on the back of strong performances from AI-related companies.
In premarket trading leading up to today's open, Dow Jones futures were down approximately 0.1% to 0.2%. S&P 500 futures also showed a fractional decline, ranging from 0.03% to 0.1% lower. Conversely, Nasdaq 100 futures edged slightly higher, up around 0.00% to 0.02%, suggesting that the enthusiasm for technology and AI stocks continues to underpin market sentiment despite the holiday-thinned trading environment.
Upcoming Market Events: A Quiet End to the Year
The economic calendar for Friday, December 26, is notably light, with no major economic reports scheduled for release. This aligns with the typical holiday season slowdown, where liquidity can be lower and volatility potentially higher due to reduced trading volumes.
Looking ahead, investors will turn their attention to key economic data releases in early January 2026, which will provide further insights into the U.S. economy's health and potential implications for monetary policy. The December Non-Farm Payrolls (NFP) report is slated for release on January 9, 2026, followed by the December U.S. Consumer Price Index (CPI) on January 13, 2026. These reports will be crucial for assessing the Federal Reserve's stance on interest rates in the coming year, with current market projections showing an 84.5% likelihood of the Fed keeping interest rates unchanged in January.
On the corporate earnings front, this week remains quiet, with no major companies slated to report. However, a few smaller firms such as TechCreate Group (TCGL), Immersion Corp (IMMR), and RCI Hospitality (RICK) have earnings scheduled for today.
Major Stock News and Corporate Developments
Several companies are making headlines as trading commences today:
- Nvidia (NVDA): The AI chip giant is once again in the spotlight. Shares of Nvidia were up between 0.6% and 0.7% in premarket trading. This follows news that Nvidia is acquiring key assets and technology from AI chip startup Groq for a substantial $20 billion in cash. This strategic move is seen as a significant step for Nvidia to solidify its dominance in the AI inference sector, with Groq's founder, Jonathan Ross, reportedly joining Nvidia. Separately, reports indicate that Nvidia has ceased testing manufacturing chips using Intel's (INTC) 18A production process, which contributed to a slight dip in Intel's shares.
- Nike (NKE): The sportswear giant saw its shares surge 4.6% on Wednesday and maintain a positive, albeit smaller, gain in premarket today. This boost came after a regulatory filing revealed that Apple (AAPL) CEO Tim Cook made a personal purchase of $3 million worth of Nike shares.
- Micron Technology (MU): The semiconductor company experienced a 3.8% rise on Wednesday, driven by the strong performance of AI-related stocks. In premarket today, Micron shares continued their ascent, gaining 2% and adding to a nearly 22% surge this month, fueled by optimistic earnings forecasts.
- Dynavax Technologies Corp. (DVAX): Shares of the biotechnology company soared 38.2% after French pharmaceutical giant Sanofi (SNY) announced its decision to acquire Dynavax in a deal valued at approximately $2.2 billion.
- Intel Corp. (INTC): Shares were down 0.5% following reports that Nvidia (NVDA) has stopped testing its 18A production process with Intel.
- Snowflake (SNOW): The cloud data warehousing company is reportedly in advanced discussions to acquire Observe, an AI-native observability startup, for around $1 billion. This would be Snowflake's largest acquisition to date, bolstering its expansion into application monitoring and AI infrastructure.
- Prudential Financial (PRU): The financial services company saw its shares rebound after six consecutive sessions of declines. This recovery is attributed to stabilizing price sentiment and the announcement of a planned share buyback program of up to $1 billion, set to begin in 2026.
- Biohaven Pharmaceutical Holding Company Ltd. (BHVN): Biohaven shares slumped 13.4% in premarket trading after its experimental depression drug failed to meet the primary endpoint in a mid-stage clinical trial, marking a setback for the company.
- DENSO Corporation: The Japanese automotive components manufacturer announced a joint development agreement with MediaTek Inc., a leading semiconductor design company, to accelerate the creation of next-generation automotive system-on-chips (SoCs).
- Infineon Technologies: The German semiconductor manufacturer announced a significant milestone, with all its global operations now being supplied with 100% green electricity, a step towards its CO2-neutral operations goal by 2030.
- Toyoda Gosei Co., Ltd.: The Japanese rubber and plastics manufacturer announced changes in its corporate officer responsibilities, organizational structure, and personnel, effective January 1, 2026.
As the market navigates the post-holiday trading session, the enduring strength of the AI sector and strategic corporate maneuvers are setting the tone for what promises to be an interesting close to the trading year. Investors will continue to monitor these developments closely as they position their portfolios for the new year.
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.