The U.S. stock market opened Friday, November 28, 2025, on a positive note, with major indexes showing early gains despite an earlier technical glitch that briefly halted futures trading and a holiday-shortened session. Investors are closely watching for fresh economic data and corporate earnings, while maintaining optimism around potential Federal Reserve interest rate cuts in the near future. The market is set to close early today at 1 p.m. ET for stocks and 2 p.m. ET for bonds, following the Thanksgiving holiday.
Market Indexes Show Resilience
Major U.S. stock indexes demonstrated resilience at the open, extending a four-day winning streak. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) gained 98 points, or 0.2%, at the open. The S&P 500 (SPX) and Nasdaq Composite (IXIC) also advanced, rising 0.2% and 0.3% respectively. This positive start comes after a challenging month, with all three major indexes entering Friday down for November; the Nasdaq (IXIC) had fallen 2.2%, the S&P 500 (SPX) 0.4%, and the Dow (DJIA) 0.3% through Wednesday. However, the indexes are currently on pace for their best weekly gain since June, with the Nasdaq (IXIC) up 4.2%, the S&P 500 (SPX) around 3.2%, and the Dow (DJIA) approximately 2.6% through the first three trading sessions of this holiday-shortened week.
Earlier in the day, futures contracts for the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA), S&P 500 (SPX), and Nasdaq 100 (NDX) had pointed slightly higher, up 0.1%, 0.1%, and 0.2% respectively, before a technical outage at CME Group (CME) data centers temporarily halted trading in various futures and options markets. Despite this disruption, which impacted liquidity across several markets including S&P 500 futures and Dow futures, trading resumed with slight gains, indicating underlying market strength.
Upcoming Market Events and Economic Outlook
Investors are keenly awaiting several economic data releases today that could influence market sentiment. The U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis is scheduled to release the core private final consumption deflator (PCE) inflation data for September, a key metric for the Federal Reserve. Personal spending data for September is also expected today, which analysts anticipate will be soft, consistent with recent retail sales figures. These releases are crucial as market participants are increasingly hopeful for another possible interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve at its December meeting, with futures pricing reflecting over an 80% probability of a quarter-point cut. Speculation also continues regarding the potential nomination of the next Fed Chairman.
Beyond today's data, the weekend will see an important OPEC+ meeting, which could impact oil prices and the broader energy sector.
In terms of corporate earnings, today is a busy day for some companies. Havila Kystruten AS (HKY) is holding its Q3 2025 earnings call today, following the release of its financial report yesterday. Chagee Holdings Limited (CHA) also announced its unaudited financial results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2025, reporting net revenues of RMB3,208.3 million (US$450.7 million). Additionally, WeRide (WRD) is among several major companies expected to report earnings today.
Major Stock News and Corporate Developments
Several companies are making headlines today, contributing to individual stock movements:
The earlier technical outage at CME Group (CME) exchanges, caused by a cooling issue at a CyrusOne data center, was a significant event impacting futures trading. While this temporarily halted some futures, trading in individual stocks was not affected.
Shares of Robinhood Markets (HOOD) continued their upward trend, rising a further 1.5% in premarket trading after soaring nearly 11% on Wednesday. This surge followed news of the company expanding its offerings into prediction markets.
Jefferies Financial Group (JEF) saw its stock edge lower today amidst reports that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is probing what the firm disclosed to investors regarding its exposure to the now-collapsed car parts company First Brands.
Alphabet (GOOGL), the parent company of Google, resumed its ascent, rising 1.5% before the bell. The tech giant recently unveiled its advanced Gemini 3 AI model, driving renewed optimism. Alphabet (GOOGL) entered trading today with a market capitalization of $3.87 trillion, having surpassed Microsoft (MSFT) last week, and is now on the cusp of joining Nvidia (NVDA) and Apple (AAPL) in the exclusive $4 trillion market cap club.
In the cryptocurrency space, Coinbase Global (COIN) rose 2.7% in premarket trading as Bitcoin remained above the $91,000 mark. Other notable pre-market gainers included SMX (Security Matters) (SMX), which surged 78.16%, CDT Equity Inc. (CDT), up 15.46%, and Micron Technology (MU), which gained 3.24%. AppLovin Corp. (APP) also showed strong performance on Wednesday, surging 5.5% on the back of artificial intelligence developments.
As the market heads into its early close, the focus remains on the interplay of economic data, corporate news, and the ongoing anticipation of the Federal Reserve's monetary policy decisions, all contributing to a dynamic end to the trading week and month.
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.