A trader works at his desk on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) after the opening bell rings on December 3, 2025 in New York.
Timothy A. Clary | AFP | Getty Images
Stock futures were little changed Thursday morning as investors grew more optimistic about a rate cut in December.
Futures linked to the Dow Jones Industrial Average 45 points (0.1%) added. S&P futures While floating above the flatline, Nasdaq 100 futures The decline was less than 0.1%.
In after-hours trading, sales force Shares rose more than 5% after the company provided better-than-expected earnings forecasts. Five Below Shares rose about 2% after the discount retailer’s profits beat Wall Street expectations.
ADP’s latest jobs report released early Wednesday helped 30 stocks rise. Dow Jones Industrial Average It rose on the day along with two other major U.S. stock indexes. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose more than 400 points, or 0.9%. The S&P 500 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite ended the day up 0.3% and 0.2%, respectively.
Investors took the ADP data, which reflected a surprising decline in private payrolls in November, as another signal that the Federal Reserve may be more inclined to lower key interest rates at its next meeting on December 10th. According to the CME FedWatch tool, the market has priced in an 87% chance of a rate cut next Wednesday, which is significantly higher than expectations for a rate cut just a few weeks ago.
The market will focus on further jobs data on Thursday, when the Labor Department releases new jobless claims for the week ending Nov. 29 at 8:30 a.m. ET. Economists expect the number of applications to rise slightly to 220,000, according to a Dow Jones survey. Employment agency Challenger, Gray & Christmas is also scheduled to announce the number of layoffs for November.
Other important announcements this week come on Friday, when the Commerce Department releases delayed September statistics on spending, income and the Consumer Expenditure Price Index, the Fed’s main inflation measure. The University of Michigan also plans to release a consumer survey for December.
Artificial intelligence trading remained volatile on Wednesday. The tech sector is the worst laggard among the S&P 500 sectors. microsoft, Nvidia and broadcom.
Microsoft shares closed 2.5% lower after The Information reported that the company was lowering its artificial intelligence-related software sales targets. Microsoft disputed the report’s claims, and its stock price recovered from its trading lows.
“Rotation is often referred to as the ‘lifeblood of a bull market,’ and this cycle has primarily been characterized by the leadership of large tech companies followed by a broader move into other cyclical sectors,” Adam Turnquist, chief technical strategist at LPL Financial, said in a note to clients. “While this may simply be a reaction from rising levels, we need to pay close attention to this change.”
Investors are also paying close attention to the Trump administration’s tariff policy and its impact on the domestic labor market. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told the New York Times’ Dealbook Summit on Wednesday that even if the current tariff structure does not prevail in a case pending before the Supreme Court, the administration could restructure tariff policy, citing several provisions of the 1962 Trade Act.
