U.S. stock futures fell Sunday night as Wall Street’s strong late-November rally looked set to hit a slump on the first trading day of December.
Dow Jones Industrial Average (YM=F) contracts fell 0.4%. S&P 500 futures (ES=F) fell 0.5% and Nasdaq 100 futures (NQ=F) fell 0.7%.
The declines follow a holiday-shortened week of gains for stocks. The S&P 500 (^GSPC) rose 3.7% and the Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) jumped nearly 5%, emerging from a choppy November. The Dow (^DJI) also posted a solid 3.2% gain.
Monday begins the first trading session of December, historically one of the friendliest months for the market. However, much of that boost can be attributed to the “Santa Claus rally,” a period of increased business activity during the Christmas holidays. This year, analysts are moving away from the concept of a booming holiday season after much of the year has been unpredictable, while constantly bucking seasonal trends.
“None have performed the way they have seasonally,” Amy Wu Silverman, head of derivatives strategy at RBC Capital Markets, told Yahoo Finance.
The market’s rally in Thanksgiving week was largely driven by rising hopes for an interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve in December, as more than 85% of bets are based on a quarter-point cut next week. Meanwhile, after a year of clashes with current Chairman Jerome Powell, President Trump has announced that he has chosen who he wants to lead the next central bank.
“I know who I’m going to pick, yes,” Trump told the media Sunday night from Air Force One, without naming his pick.
Economic releases continue to return to normal after the chaos of the 43-day government shutdown. This week features a delayed release of the September Personal Consumption Expenditure Index, which contains the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation gauge. Investors will also see private reports on manufacturing activity and service sector activity, as well as ADP’s monthly private payrolls report.
Although the end of scheduled releases is approaching, corporate earnings continue this week with reports from bargain retailers Dollar Tree (DLTR), Dollar General (DG), and Five Below (FIVE), while Salesforce (CRM) and CrowdStrike (CRWD) will appear in the tech industry.
Stock coverage for Monday, December 1, 2025.