US stocks were little changed on Friday as traders returned from the Christmas holiday for a single session ahead of the weekend. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, the S&P 500, and the Nasdaq Composite all hovered near the flatline in thin post-Christmas trading.
Meanwhile, precious metals continued their torrid rally, with gold and silver futures rising to fresh records amid fresh geopolitical tensions and continued weakness in the dollar. Stocks ended the shortened Christmas Eve session at record highs, with both the S&P 500 and the Dow at new peaks. All three major indexes notched their fifth consecutive victory as Wall Street entered the Santa Claus rally period.
The upward trend has put the indexes on track for solid weekly gains as they begin to wrap up a rollercoaster year. The S&P 500 is up about 18% so far this year, on track for its sixth year of 15%-plus gains out of the past seven. The Nasdaq has seen over a 20% rise in 2025, despite briefly entering a bear market after President Trump imposed sweeping tariffs in April.
Stocks have continued their upward trajectory despite shrinking bets on interest rate cuts from the Federal Reserve next year. Traders are currently betting on less than a 15% chance of a rate cut next month, although opinions are more divided on what the central bank will do in March.
No major economic data or earnings results were expected to close out the holiday-shortened week. The market opened on a muted note on Friday, the last session of the holiday-shortened trading week. The Dow dipped slightly below the flatline, while the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq hovered above it. This comes after the Dow and S&P 500 reached new records on Christmas Eve, with traders hoping for a potential Santa Claus rally.
In other news, Coupang stock rose 6% in premarket trading after the South Korean internet retail company identified the source of a data breach that exposed the information of its 33 million customers. The stock had previously dropped 17% for the month following the breach, but investors are optimistic now that the source of the leak has been found.
Nike shares also saw a boost after Apple CEO Tim Cook doubled his stake in the company, buying shares worth around $3 million. This move was seen as a vote of confidence in CEO Elliott Hill’s turnaround plan, despite recent quarterly earnings report indicating weakness in China and at its Converse brand.
Oil prices headed for the biggest weekly gain since late October as traders tracked a partial US blockade of crude shipments from Venezuela and a military strike by Washington against a militant group in Nigeria. Global benchmark Brent traded above $62 a barrel, rising more than 3% for the week, while West Texas Intermediate was over $58.
Lastly, the year-end rally in precious metals continued on Friday, with gold, silver, and platinum all hitting fresh all-time highs. This rally comes amid ongoing geopolitical tensions and a weaker dollar. Overall, the markets remained steady as traders prepared for the weekend ahead.
