Wall Street Closed Higher, With the Dow and S&P 500 at Record Highs
Markets are also entering the period known as the Santa Claus rally, a seasonal phenomenon describing the tendency for U.S. stocks to rise.
Quick overview
- The Dow Jones rose 0.6%, the S&P 500 gained 0.3%, and the Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.2%, with the S&P 500 closing at a record high.
- Stronger-than-expected economic growth data showed the U.S. GDP expanded at an annualized rate of 4.3% in Q3, boosting investor confidence.
- Despite robust growth, expectations for Federal Reserve rate cuts in 2026 remain unchanged amid persistent inflation pressures.
- PowerBank Corporation and Omeros Corporation saw significant stock gains following positive company announcements and FDA approvals.
In this context, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.6%, the S&P 500 gained 0.3%, and the Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.2%.
U.S. stocks finished little changed on Wednesday, though the S&P 500 closed at another record high, joined this time by the Dow Jones, as stronger-than-expected economic growth data bolstered confidence in the U.S. economy.
In addition, data on initial jobless claims for the week ending December 20 came in below expectations, while continuing claims through December 13 exceeded forecasts.
By the close, the Dow Jones climbed 0.60% to 48,731.16 points, the S&P 500 rose 0.32% to 6,932.05, and the Nasdaq Composite added 0.22% to 23,613.31.
Wall Street buoyed by Q3 GDP and the Santa Claus rally
Investors were encouraged by data showing that the U.S. economy grew at a solid pace in the third quarter. Gross domestic product expanded at an annualized rate of 4.3%, beating expectations.
While the strong reading briefly pushed Treasury yields higher, equity markets were largely unfazed, as traders viewed the data as backward-looking and unlikely to alter the broader policy outlook.
Markets are also entering the period known as the “Santa Claus rally,” a seasonal phenomenon describing the tendency for U.S. stocks to rise during the last five trading days of December and the first two sessions of January. Gains so far this week have kept that seasonal narrative intact.
Despite robust growth data, expectations that the Federal Reserve will eventually ease monetary policy remain broadly unchanged. Interest-rate futures suggest traders continue to price in rate cuts in 2026, against a backdrop of a resilient economy and persistent inflation pressures.
Wall Street movers
Shares of PowerBank Corporation jumped 4.1% on Wednesday after the company announced it had received the first $4 million payment from a $4 million transaction with Solar Advocate Development LLC related to three community solar projects in New York.
Omeros Corporation surged 75.5% after the FDA approved YARTEMLEA, the first and only treatment for transplant-associated thrombotic microangiopathy (TA-TMA).
Do China’s rare-earth restrictions persist despite the Trump-Xi deal?
China continues to restrict exports of rare-earth elements needed by the United States for domestic production of permanent magnets and other products, despite an October agreement between President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping aimed at easing such restrictions.
According to a Bloomberg report citing more than a dozen consumers, producers, government officials, and trade experts, while China has increased shipments of finished products—mainly permanent magnets—U.S. industry still lacks access to the raw materials needed to manufacture them domestically.
Ongoing supply constraints underscore lingering tensions in U.S.-China relations following the truce reached on October 30 in South Korea, where the United States agreed to cut tariffs and China pledged to restore rare-earth supplies. At the time, Trump described the deal as the “de facto removal” of several Chinese restrictions.
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