Friday's session on Wall Street ended with minimal declines in the main indexes, after the S&P 500 set new historical records for several days.
The Dow Jones Industrial dropped 0.04 percent at closing. and amounted to 48,710.97 points.
The S&P 500 fell by 0.03% at the end of the day. and amounted to 6,929.94 points.
The Nasdaq Composite fell 0.09%. up to 23,593.1 points
The Russell 2000 mid-cap index is down 0.54%. up to 2,534.35 points
The VIX index increases by 0.97%. up to 13.60 points
For the week, the S&P 500 gained 1.4%, marking its fourth weekly gain in five weeks. The Dow and Nasdaq also rose more than 1%. this week.
“People are buying at low levels here and there, but there is little information. You're not getting corporate profits, you're not getting a lot of economic data, so it's probably just more technical issues and positioning,” said Tom Hainlin, national investment strategist at U.S. Bank Asset Management.
The strategist emphasized that the S&P 500 index's rise to new records on Wednesday was not driven by the technology sector, but by financials and industrials – two cyclical areas of the U.S. economy.
“This adds confidence ahead of 2026 that it's not just about technology. The market is benefiting from the tax law signed in July and rate reductions in the fourth quarter of this year,” he continued.
There are only three trading sessions left until the end of 2025, and the major indexes are heading towards record highs.
There is no shortage of concerns that the market will have to overcome in the coming year. CNBC's Market Strategist Survey 2026 shows the S&P 500 is expected to post another double-digit gain as loose monetary policy, fiscal stimulus and artificial intelligence support corporate earnings growth.
Investors are waiting to see whether the so-called Santa Claus rally, a seasonal phenomenon in which the S&P 500 index records increases during the last five trading days of the year and the first two Januarys, will take place this time. This period started on Wednesday and will last until January 5.
Turnover was low because many major markets were not operating, including: in Europe, Australia and Hong Kong due to holidays.
“The advantage is certainly on the bulls' side. Barring any external factors, the path of least resistance for stocks, in my opinion, is up,” said Paul Nolte, senior wealth advisor and market strategist at Murphy & Sylvest Wealth Management.
“2025 is coming to an end with more positives than negatives. While the current narrative revolves around the AI bubble and tariff concerns, as well as the volatility of a possible next government shutdown and inflation, U.S. equities have so far largely ignored all of these concerns over time,” Mark Newton, director of technical strategy at Fundstrat, wrote in the report.
The S&P 500 Index is up more than 17% in 2025, driven by large-cap technology stocks for most of the year. Recently, however, this growth has expanded as investors invest in cyclical industries such as the financial and resources sectors.
Nvidia shares rose 1% after the AI chip designer licensed the technology from startup Groq and hired its CEO.
Micron Technology shares fell less than 1 percent, after rising about 22 percent. since the beginning of the month, driven by strong earnings forecasts.
Shares of US-listed precious metals mining companies such as First Majestic, Coeur Mining and Endeavor Silver rose as silver and gold prices again hit new records.
On the oil market, WTI contracts for January are down by 2.54%. to USD 56.87 per barrel, and February Brent futures fall by 2.31%. up to USD 60.80/b. (PAP Business)
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