Exterior of Macy’s Herald Square store in New York City, November 28, 2025.
Kenna Betancourt | AFP | Getty Images
This is CNBC’s Morning Squawk newsletter. Subscribe here to receive future editions in your inbox.
Here are five important things investors need to know to start their trading day.
1. Go shopping
Macy’s The company beat Wall Street’s third-quarter revenue and bottom line expectations this morning, marking the fastest growth rate in more than three years. The department store operator’s results are just one of several data points investors have received recently on the state of U.S. consumers.
Here’s what you need to know:
Despite the strong financial results, Macy’s stock fell more than 6% before the bell. The retailer took a cautious stance for the quarter, citing consumer spending concerns and pressure from tariffs. american eagle outfitters American Eagle shares rose 12% after the company reported better-than-expected earnings and gave a positive outlook for fourth-quarter comparable sales. American Eagle said its ad campaign featuring actress Sydney Sweeney and NFL star Travis Kelce is “drawing more customers,” but it has not yet become a major revenue driver. Sweeney is just one of several celebrities who have appeared in the clothing brand’s denim ads. As CNBC’s Gabriel Fonrouge and Natalie Rice report, companies are doing everything they can to win the so-called “denim wars.” Additionally, the numbers include more than 202 million Americans shopping in the five days between Thanksgiving and Cyber Monday, the highest number ever since the National Retail Federation began tracking in 2017. Follow us here for the latest live market information.
2. Hiring or firing?
A “We’re Hiring” sign in the window of a Denny’s restaurant on November 19, 2025 in Miami, Florida.
Joe Radle | Getty Images
President Donald Trump has said the tariffs would bring manufacturing jobs back to the United States, but as CNBC’s Jeff Cox reports, business executives and economic forecasters fear the opposite will happen.
Respondents to the Institute for Supply Management’s survey said the mandate is prompting them to cut staff numbers and start offering severance benefits. One respondent said: “The situation is tougher than during the coronavirus pandemic in terms of supply chain uncertainty.” The Federal Reserve’s report last week also showed that employment had “declined slightly” over the past few weeks.
I would like to keep an eye on the ADP Private Payroll Report, which will be released this morning. A Dow Jones survey of economists predicts that payrolls will increase by 40,000 in November.
3. Under pressure
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman speaks to the media after a Q&A at the OpenAI Data Center in Abilene, Texas, USA on September 23, 2025.
Shelby Tauber | Reuters
OpenAI is feeling the heat as a rival alphabet And humanity will gain ground in the artificial intelligence race. Earlier this week, CEO Sam Altman reportedly sent out a staff memo outlining “Code Red” efforts to improve the ChatGPT bot.
The announcement comes amid growing fanfare for Alphabet’s Gemini 3 model, which has outperformed industry benchmarks. Meanwhile, Anthropic is reportedly preparing for its largest IPO in history.
As CNBC’s Pia Singh reports, Wall Street now views Alphabet Inc.’s Google as the leader in AI. Shares of Alphabet and its chip partners broadcom It has increased rapidly in recent weeks, Nvidia and microsoft Both OpenAI business partners have withdrawn.
4. Wires are crossed
July 17, 2024 at Sinclair Broadcast Group headquarters in Cockeysville, Maryland.
Kevin Dietch | Getty Images
Broadcasting station executives are running toward restructuring the industry, but are running into obstacles.
nextstar trying to buy tengameanwhile sinclair He made a hostile bid last week to take over E.W. Scripps. These companies, like major media companies, are looking for ways to shore up their operations as the profitability tied to traditional cable bundles shrinks.
But as CNBC’s Lillian Rizzo and Alex Sherman report, Sinclair’s attempts to scale up have been marred by family business challenges. Meanwhile, the Nexstar-Tenga deal would require changes to decades-old regulatory rules.
5. Takeoff
A Boeing 737 Max aircraft at the company’s manufacturing facility in Renton, Washington, April 15, 2025.
Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images
boeing Investors required seatbelts for yesterday’s ride.
The stock soared more than 10%, its best day since April, after Chief Financial Officer Jay Malabe said the airline expects deliveries of its 737s and 787s to increase in 2026. He also said the delayed certification of the 737-10 could come late next year.
In particular, Malabe said increased deliveries will be a “huge driver” for cash flow. As CNBC’s Raya Neelakandan points out, the Virginia-based company hasn’t posted an annual profit since 2018.
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— CNBC’s Gabriel Fonrouge, Natalie Rice, Jeff Cox, Ashley Caputo, Dylan Butts, Pia Singh, Alex Sherman, Lillian Rizzo, Raya Neelakandan and Haley Cucinello contributed to this report. Josephine Rozzelle edited this version.
