MARKET SNAPSHOT

U.S. stocks rose for a fourth consecutive day as AI-bubble fears eased ahead of Thanksgiving. Treasurys traded sideways as U.S. markets entered the holiday season placing high odds that the Fed will cut interest rates in December. Oil futures climbed, despite a host of bearish pressures. Gold prices gained while the dollar weakened.

MARKET WRAPS

EQUITIES

Stock investors are heading into this year's Thanksgiving holiday feeling optimistic.

Major U.S. stock indexes notched their fourth straight session of gains, boosted by expectations for interest-rate cuts and renewed enthusiasm for the artificial-intelligence trade. The Nasdaq Composite Index is on track for its best Thanksgiving week since 2008.

"There's a lot of reasons to be optimistic," said Carol Schleif, chief market strategist at BMO Private Wealth. "People are starting to look into early 2026 and get positioned for the holidays."

Fears of a bubble in AI stocks have receded, powering gains in shares of tech names like Microsoft, CoreWeave and Dell. The Nasdaq led major indexes, climbing 0.8%.

But Wednesday's market gains were also broad-based, with all but two sectors of the S&P 500 marching higher and the broader benchmark rising 0.7%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 0.7%. Both indexes are headed for their best Thanksgiving week since 2012.

This week is an abbreviated one for stock trading-markets are closed Thursday for the holiday, and both the Nasdaq and New York Stock Exchange close at 1 p.m. on Friday.

Earlier Wednesday, Asian shares closed mostly higher.

In mainland China, the ChiNext reversed early losses to jump 2.1%, while the Shanghai Composite and Shenzhen Composite gained 0.2% and 0.3%, respectively.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng edged 0.1% higher.

Japan's Nikkei added 1.9%, led by tech and financial stocks as SoftBank recovered some of its past session losses.

Stocks in Australia rose, as the S&P/ASX 200 Benchmark Index gained 0.8%.

New Zealand's S&P/NZX 50 Index added 0.6%.

COMMODITIES

Oil futures picked up after an uncertain start, unfazed by bearish-looking U.S. crude and product stock builds, while focusing on efforts to get Russia and Ukraine to accept peace proposals.

"The crude oil market is navigating a period marked by multiple downward pressures: elevated U.S. inventories, signs of oversupply, steady OPEC+ production and diplomatic progress between Russia and Ukraine," Antonio Di Giacomo of XS.com said.

"Although Brent and WTI prices have stabilized temporarily, the short- and medium-term outlook remains tilted to the downside."

WTI climbed 1.2% to $58.65 a barrel and Brent rose 1% to $63.13.

Front month Comex gold for December delivery gained 0.6% to settle at $4165.20 per troy ounce.

TODAY'S TOP HEADLINES

Five Key Takeaways From the Fed's Economic Survey

The job market continues to sputter even as cost and price pressures persist, a Federal Reserve report found, underscoring the competing risks central bank officials will have to weigh at a key meeting next month.

Employers showed little appetite for hiring, which fell in half of the Fed's 12 regional districts, while the recently ended federal government shutdown and artificial intelligence also weighed on job seekers' prospects, according to the "beige book," an anecdotal look at the economy, gleaned from surveys and interviews by each of the Fed's branches.

At the same time, tariffs and health insurance added to business costs, potentially fueling inflation concerns, the beige book found.

U.K. Unveils Sweeping New Tax Hikes

LONDON - U.K. Treasury chief Rachel Reeves Wednesday announced a second consecutive year of hefty tax rises, a move aimed at reassuring investors that the British state wasn't slowly going bust under the weight of growing welfare spending and ballooning interest payments on government debt.

Reeves said that a smorgasbord of tax hikes-from a tax on more expensive properties to a levy on sweet dairy products such as milkshakes-would raise GBP26 billion, equivalent to $34.2 billion, to patch up public finances when the economy is forecast to grow slowly for years to come, crimping future tax receipts. The tax hikes may constrain that growth further, economists say.

"I have kept everyone's contribution as low as possible," Reeves said, to jeering opposition lawmakers in the House of Commons.

Jobless Claims Show Low-Hire, Low-Fire Environment Continues

The latest batch of weekly jobless-claims data brought more evidence Wednesday that the labor market is stuck in an uncertain neutral: layoffs subdued, but flagging hiring, too.

Last week 216,000 Americans filed new unemployment claims, the Labor Department said Wednesday, down from 222,000 a week earlier. Over the past year, the weekly claims number has mostly hovered between about 210,000 and 250,000, suggesting there has been no big uptick in job cuts.

But as job searches grow more frustrating, the number of people filing continued claims week after week has been gradually rising, climbing to 1.96 million in the week through Nov. 15, up from 1.95 million a week earlier and near the greatest level in four years. The continuing-claims data, which lag initial claims by a week, mirror trends in the total unemployed population, suggesting that for people who have lost work, finding a new role has grown more challenging.

Deere Warns of Tough Year Ahead as Earnings, Sales Fall

Deere said it expects the difficult market conditions that weighed on its earnings and sales in 2025 to continue into next year.

The farm-equipment manufacturer said tariffs continue to pressure margins, and it is facing persistent challenges in its large tractor business. The company is working to manage inventories across the business by aligning production with retail demand and continuing efforts to reduce high levels of used equipment in the market.

While these efforts are helping, executives said the market remains depressed as farmers cut back on big-ticket purchases amid challenging farm fundamentals and elevated interest rates.

Robinhood Goes All In On Prediction Markets with Susquehanna. The Stock Rises.

Shares of Robinhood Markets essentially flatlined following the online brokerage's public trading debut in 2021. But a recent flurry of attention around prediction markets has put the stock back in the spotlight.

On Tuesday, the company unveiled its latest initiative: a futures and derivatives exchange, in collaboration with Susquehanna International Group. Shares gained in after-hours trading following the news and continued their ascent on Wednesday, jumping 6.3%. The benchmark S&P 500 index was up 0.4%.

The independent exchange will be managed by a joint venture, with Robinhood serving as the controlling partner and Susquehanna brought on as a day-one liquidity provider, the partners said. At its core, the initiative is a way to expand Robinhood's range of prediction contracts, which span everything from sports events to elections.

Expected Major Events for Thursday

00:00/NZ: Nov ANZ Business Outlook

00:30/JPN: Oct Detailed Import & Export Statistics

00:30/AUS: 3Q Private New Capital Expenditure & Expected Expenditure

01:00/SKA: Bank of Korea Monetary Policy Committee meeting and decision

01:30/CHN: Oct Industrial Profit

04:00/MAL: Oct PPI

08:00/TAI: Oct Business Indicators

23:00/SKA: Oct Service Industry Activity Index

23:00/SKA: Oct Industrial Production Index

23:30/JPN: Oct Labour Force Survey

23:30/JPN: Nov CPI (Tokyo), CPI ex-Food (Tokyo)

23:50/JPN: Oct Preliminary Retail Sales

23:50/JPN: Oct Preliminary Industrial Production

All times in GMT. Powered by Onclusive and Dow Jones.

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This article is a text version of a Wall Street Journal newsletter published earlier today.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

November 26, 2025 16:44 ET (21:44 GMT)

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