2025

Dec 30 (Reuters) – U.S. stock index futures steadied on Tuesday, a day after the three main indexes logged their steepest one-day decline in nearly two weeks as technology stocks came under renewed selling pressure.

Wall Street kicked off the last trading week of 2025 on a dour note on Monday, as heavyweight tech and AI-linked stocks retreated from last week’s gains that had lifted the S&P 500 to a record high.

The benchmark index came within the 1% range of a historic 7,000-point mark and the Dow closed at a record high last week, with some investors eyeing a “Santa Claus rally”, a seasonal phenomenon where the S&P 500 typically posts gains in the last five trading days of the year and the first two in January, according to Stock Trader’s Almanac.

“As we near the year end, investors are facing a dilemma: if this is the year that AI is about to take off, will the U.S. stock market outperform once more?” said Kathleen Brooks, research director at XTB.

“If the answer is yes, then the end of year malaise could make way for U.S. stock indices to play catch up early in 2026.”

The indexes are set for robust monthly gains in December, with the S&P 500 and the Dow on track for their eighth consecutive month of gains, their longest monthly winning streak since 2017.

At 05:34 a.m. ET, Dow E-minis were up 10 points, S&P 500 E-minis were down 0.25 points and Nasdaq 100 E-minis were up 1 point.

On the docket are minutes from the Federal Reserve’s December 9-10 meeting, where it delivered an expected 25-basis-point cut, and took a cautious stance on further reductions until there was more clarity on the health of the U.S. labor market.

However, mild economic data since then and expectations of a new dovish Fed chair has fueled optimism around further U.S. interest rate cuts in 2026.

The S&P 500 has added about 17% so far this year, as the frenzy to capitalize on artificial intelligence helped the U.S. benchmark overtake Europe’s STOXX 600, despite investors diversifying away from U.S. stocks earlier in the year.

Among stocks, miners stabilized on Tuesday after declines in the previous session, tracking a sharp pull back in gold and silver prices.

Newmont and U.S.-listed shares of Barrick Mining gained about 1.8% each, and the Global X Silver Miners ETF was up 1.4% in premarket trading.

Trading volumes are expected to be light in the holiday-affected week with U.S. markets shut on Thursday for New Year’s Day.

(Reporting by Purvi Agarwal in Bengaluru; Editing by Krishna Chandra Eluri)

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By Akash Sriram and Abhirup Roy

Dec 30 (Reuters) – Tesla deliveries were expected to fall in the fourth quarter, as the loss of U.S. tax credits and rising global competition sapped demand even as the company rolled out cheaper versions of its best-selling electric vehicles.

The decline would follow plummeting sales in the first two quarters of the year when CEO Elon Musk faced a backlash for his political rhetoric. Third-quarter sales got a boost as buyers rushed to lock in tax credits before they expired in September. Still, Tesla is likely to report its second straight drop in annual deliveries, with this year’s decline steeper.

In October, Tesla launched stripped-down versions of the Model Y SUV and Model 3 compact sedan called Standard. It will face competition from affordable EVs made by Chevrolet and Ford, which are expected to hit the market over the next two years.

Analysts expect Tesla’s sales to recover next year, as the Standard versions, priced about $5,000 below previous base models, help the company defend volumes in Europe and Asia, where Chinese EVs are gaining ground.

The company is expected to report fourth-quarter and annual production and delivery numbers on Friday. 

NORTH AMERICA, EUROPE SALES HURT

Investor enthusiasm in Tesla largely rests on Musk’s pivot to expanding robotaxis, producing humanoid robots, and improving self-driving technology in its cars. Still, EV sales generate much of its current revenue.

Tesla is expected to deliver 432,810 vehicles in the December quarter, down about 13% from a year earlier, according to analysts polled by Visible Alpha (VA). Another consensus of 20 analysts compiled by Tesla and released on Monday shows that a sharper drop of 15% to 422,850 vehicles is expected.

Tesla’s full-year deliveries were expected to be 1.65 million vehicles this year, down 7.8% from a year earlier, marking the second consecutive annual decline, according to Visible Alpha’s poll.

The fall will be driven largely by sales in North America and Europe, Deutsche Bank analyst Edison Yu said in a note. 

MUSK MAY BE MORE FOCUSED IN 2026

The slowdown in sales has not dampened a rise in the company’s share price. Tesla shares rose over 14% this year, boosting Musk’s wealth. Facing criticism for running a cost-cutting arm of President Donald Trump’s administration, Musk has indicated he will focus on his businesses.

A recent court ruling cleared the way for Musk to reclaim a Tesla pay package that had been voided by a Delaware court. Shareholders in November also approved a new compensation package that could be worth roughly $878 billion over the next 10 years for the world’s richest person. 

Delivering 20 million vehicles in total is a key goal for that pay along with other milestones on robotaxi expansion, robot sales and valuation.

(Reporting by Akash Sriram in Bengaluru and Abhirup Roy in San Francisco; Editing by Sayantani Ghosh and David Gregorio)

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Dec 30 (Reuters) – Minutes of the Federal Reserve’s December 9-10 policy meeting are expected on Tuesday to shed fresh light on disagreements among policymakers over a decision to reduce short-term rates a third straight time and signal a near-term hold on rates in 2026. 

The Fed’s quarter-point cut in the policy rate range, to 3.50%-3.75%, drew three dissents – two from Fed bank presidents who felt no cut was needed, and one from Fed Governor Stephen Miran who, for the third time since he joined the Fed in September, was the sole proponent of a bigger half-point cut. 

With inflation running above the Fed’s 2% goal and the employment picture weakening, Fed Chair Jerome Powell said after the meeting that “you just have people who have strong views” about which of the two risks needs more policy attention. 

“It’s not like the normal situation where everyone agrees on the direction and what to do,” he said.

The 9-3 decision for the rate cut reflected “fairly broad support” among central bankers, Powell said, and put the Fed in position to “wait to see” how the economy evolves. 

Fed projections indicate the two hawkish dissenters – Kansas City Fed President Jeffrey Schmid and Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee – had company, either among the seven non-voting presidents or among voters who swallowed their rate-cut skepticism to back Powell and the majority. Six of 19 policymakers penciled in 3.9% as the appropriate 2025 year-end rate, above where the rate cut actually left it.

For next year, policymakers are even more broadly split about where rates should go, with several seeing no rate cuts as appropriate, and others more supportive of one, two or more. 

Since the decision, a number of official economic releases that had been delayed by the government shutdown have tended to favor the doves, though economists say the reports had so much missing and imputed data they warrant plenty of skepticism.

The consumer price index rose a relatively muted 2.7% in November from a year earlier, for instance, but most of the data came from prices collected in the second half of the month, after the government reopened, and when retailers were offering discounts for the holiday season. 

A separate report showed the unemployment rate rose to 4.6%, but it was derived using an unusual methodology because the shutdown had prevented the regular collection of data. 

The minutes are due to be released at 2 p.m. EST (1900 GMT).

(Reporting by Ann Saphir; Editing by Andrea Ricci )

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