A trader works at his desk on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) after the opening bell in New York on December 3, 2025.
Timothy A. Clary | Afp | Getty Images
The S&P 500 rose to a new all-time high on Wednesday after notching a record close in the prior trading day.
The broad market index was last up 0.1% after rising 0.2% to that fresh record earlier in the session. The Nasdaq Composite fell 0.1%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 170 points, or 0.4%.
Nike was among the day’s winners, advancing around 5% after Apple CEO Tim Cook disclosed he bought shares in the apparel maker. Micron Technology was another standout, with shares up more than 4%.
Stocks were coming off a winning session, led by tech names including Google parent Alphabet, Nvidia, Broadcom and Amazon. The S&P 500 posted a fresh record close of 6,909.79 on Tuesday.
Those moves came after the Commerce Department issued its a third-quarter reading of the U.S. gross domestic product that came in at 4.3%, surpassing the Dow Jones consensus estimate of 3.2%.The report, which had been delayed by the government shutdown, initially led traders to lower their expectations of interest rate cuts early next year. However, fed funds futures trading still indicates two rate cuts by the end of 2026, according to the CME FedWatch Tool.
Investors continue to hope for the coveted Santa Claus rally, a year-end stock market surge that occurs between the last five trading days of the year and the first two of the new year — in this case from the opening bell on Dec. 24 until Jan. 5.
According to LPL Financial chief technical strategist Adam Turnquist, the S&P 500 has averaged a 1.3% return during the Santa Claus rally period, with positive results occurring 78% of the time. The market’s typical seven-day average return is just 0.3% with a positivity rate of 58%, meanwhile, he wrote in a note to clients.
“Momentum heading into year-end suggests a favorable setup for a positive Santa Claus Rally — a historically bullish signal for January and the year ahead,” Turnquist said. “While overall market breadth remains somewhat narrow for an index near record highs, the trend is moving in the right direction, supported by a rotation toward cyclical sectors. A close above the S&P 500’s December high could pave the way for the next leg higher above the 7,000-point milestone.”
The New York Stock Exchange will close early on Wednesday at 1 p.m. ET on Christmas Eve and will be closed Thursday for Christmas Day.
