FactSet Evening Market Recap

US equities were stronger in the first full week of 2026, with the Dow, S&P 500, and the Russell 2000 ending at fresh record highs. There was a lot of evolution regarding Venezuela in the week following the US capture of Nicolas Maduro. December nonfarm payrolls rose 40K, below the Street. December ISM manufacturing printed below consensus and remained in contraction for the tenth straight month.

US equities finished mostly higher in Thursday trading. Breadth was notably positive with equal-weight S&P outperforming the benchmark by more than 110 bp. Several dynamics in focus as market continues to wait for NFP, SCOTUS decision on IEEPA tariffs, start of Q4 earnings and Fed chair pick by President Trump.

U.S. equities finished mostly lower in Wednesday trading, closing near the worst levels of the session. Geopolitics and a heavy data slate dominated attention, though economic releases did little to shift Federal Reserve expectations. In corporate news, political commentary from President Trump drove sharp moves in defense and housing-related stocks and mergers and acquisitions remained a key source of support for select names.

U.S. equities finished higher in Tuesday trading, ending near session highs with the S&P 500 posting a fresh record close; its first since 24-Dec. A few dynamics were in focus today, with notable movers in both directions following Nvidia's CES keynote. Memory/storage and select semiconductor stocks were the big AI trade beneficiaries, while semiconductors more broadly were also supported by Microchip's guidance raise and a pro-cyclical rotation that defined Monday's session.

US equities closed higher in Monday trading, though ended a bit off best levels. Geopolitics dominated the headlines amid developments in Venezuela, but the impact on broader market sentiment was fairly muted. In macro news, December ISM manufacturing printed at 47.9, below the 48.7 consensus and November's 48.2

Stocks ended lower this week with most discussion centered on the failed Santa Claus rally/lack of seasonal tailwind, while broader macro catalysts were limited. December FOMC minutes offered no surprises, and reinforced expectations for cautious, gradual easing in 2026 though division within the Fed remains a key focus point. Housing data modestly surprised to the upside, jobless claims declined w/w, and markets continued to look ahead to early-2026 catalysts.

It was another very quiet, low-volume session ahead of tomorrow's Christmas Eve early close. Big tech was mostly higher with Nvidia faring best. Today's economic data offered mixed macro takeaways with stronger hard data (GDP, ADP private payrolls) but weaker soft data (Consumer Confidence, Richmond Fed Index).

US equities finished higher in Monday trading, ending not far from best levels. It was a fairly quiet session from a headline perspective, but the momentum from late last week carried over into a broad risk-on day. A bit of Fedspeak today in macro news.

Major US equity indices were mixed this week. Major AI infrastructure names saw additional scrutiny after reports of stalled negotiations for a $10B Michigan datacenter with Blue Owl Capital, Oracle's largest datacenter partner (though Oracle says the project remains on track). However, other AI headlines from the week were more upbeat, including a very well-received earnings report from Micron.

US equities higher in Thursday trading, just off their best levels. Disinflation traction and better tech/AI sentiment were the big pieces to today's risk-on, broad-based rally. Additionally, the day saw the coolest core CPI print in nearly five years adding support to dovish Fed narrative.

US equities were lower in Wednesday trading, finishing near worst levels, with the Dow Jones, S&P500, and Nasdaq closing down 47bps, 116bps, and 181bps respectively. AI weakness was the big story today following Financial Times report that Blue Owl backed out of an Oracle and OpenAI data center project in Michigan with no reprieve from Oracle comments project remains on track. Fedespeak from Waller remarks at Yale had a dovish cast. Today’s $13B auction of 20s was well received. Micron earnings after the close and President Trump addressing nation tonight.

Stocks were mostly lower with Energy and healthcare the big specific decliners. Rotational dynamics were mostly on pause with cyclicals/small caps mostly lower and AI-linked/semis/Big Tech trading mixed. Treasuries were a bit firmer after today's high profile economic data.

US equities were lower in Monday trading as stocks ended a bit off worst levels. Stocks were modestly lower in anticipation of key catalysts later this week. In macro news, the December Empire State Manufacturing Index posted a surprise negative print.

US equities were mixed this week. The Nasdaq was the worst performing major average, while the S&P ended the week slightly lower despite capping off a fresh record close on Thursday. The big market story was the cyclical rotation that gained further traction at the expense of the momentum and AI trades. The rotation was tabbed to factors including the less hawkish FOMC takeaways, a looming 2026 fiscal impulse with OBBA, taxes, and deprecation expense tailwinds, as well as some company-specific updates around the AI trade.

US equities finished mostly higher in Thursday trading, ending near best levels. Tech was a notable underperformer with disappointing results from Oracle exacerbating the negative sentiment surrounding AI infrastructure. Additionally, Google lagged after the (expected) rollout of the new GPT 5.2 model, given recent enthusiasm over its Gemini 3 release.

US equities finished higher in Wednesday trading, ending just a bit off best levels, with the Dow Jones, S&P500, and Nasdaq closing up 105bps, 67bps, and 33bps respectively. FOMC in focus today with a 25 bp rate cut, three dissents, forward guidance tweak and plans to purchase $40B/month in Treasury bills. Elsewhere, Q3 ECI rose 80bps, a bit below Q2's 90bps and just shy of consensus. GE Vernova providing some positive AI-related commentary ahead of Oracle and Broadcom results. Sanguine conference commentary on US consumer, buyback tailwinds among other highlights of the day.

US equities were mixed in Tuesday trading, off best levels. There were not a lot of big directional drivers with the market largely in waiting mode for FOMC on Wednesday and some key AI events, including AVGO and ORCL earnings and a new OpenAI model. Analyst day and sell-side conference presentations were driving some of the more notable movers

US equities finished lower in Monday trading, ending not far from worst levels. Rate backup was one of the bigger stories for today as a hawkish cut has become the consensus for Wednesday's FOMC. AI was another key press theme over the weekend, which included focus on a positive broader market sentiment given reasonable valuations, and AI optimism.

US equities were higher this week, adding to last week's gains which saw the S&P 500 post its seventh straight positive month in November. November ADP notably undershot expectations to the lowest since Mar-23. There were some positive takeaways from high-profile tech earnings this week along with another wave of AI-related partnerships and announcements.

There was very little readthrough in Thursday trading as stocks struggled for overall direction with much more seemingly going on beneath the surface. The shift from micro to macro has been the story this week with a busy sell-side conference calendar and more tech and retail earnings. In addition, when it comes to the key inputs for the market narrative, there are lots of moving pieces as of late surrounding the Fed, AI, the labor market and consumers. 

US equities were higher in Wednesday trading though stocks ended a bit off best levels, with the Dow Jones, S&P500, and Nasdaq closing up 86bbps, 30bps, and 17bps respectively. Themes of the day highlighted in mixed headlines regarding Microsoft customer AI adoption versus Marvell data center growth. Softening labor market, support for more Fed cuts, also highlighted in November ADP private payrolls falling 32K versus expectations to increase by~10K, while Industrial Production met, and ISM Services and S&P Services PMI came in ahead. December FOMC decision on deck for next week, with probably of additional 25bp...