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U.S. stocks moved higher in early Tuesday trading, while Treasury yields held steady following the biggest decline in five weeks, as investors looked to tidy positions and portfolios into the final trading day of a outstanding year for domestic stocks.
Updated at 9:33 AM EST
Green end to the year?
The S&P 500 was marked 17 points, or 0.3%, in the opening minutes of trading with the Nasdaq rising 50 points, or 0.26%.
The Dow gained 145 points while the mid-cap Russell 2000 added 13 points, or 0.6%.
Stock Market Today
Stocks ended sharply lower on Monday, with the S&P 500 retreating 1.06% even as the bond market saw its biggest pullback in yields in more than a month.
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The market move reflected investors booking end-of-year profits and bracing for near-term uncertainty on interest rates, policy and economic performance under a new U.S. government.
The moves still left the benchmark, the broadest measure of blue-chip shares, on pace for a 25.2% annual gain. That's the best performance since 2021, but it could be tough to replicate over the coming year.
"Positive surprises that drove stocks higher in the last year may be more difficult to come by in the year ahead. Inflation pressures are lingering, interest rates are rising, and geopolitical threats are significant," said Jeffrey Buchbinder, chief equity strategist at LPL Financial.
Bond markets may prove to be a crucial component to next year's stock performance as U.S. debt levels approach the $40 trillion mark and inflation continues to hold north of the Federal Reserve's 2% target.
Last night's easing of yields, however, is likely to run through today's session, with benchmark 10-year notes trading at 4.521% and 2-year notes at 4.241% heading into the start of the New York session.
Related: Fed interest rate cut bets in 2025 tied to Trump policy wild cards
On Wall Street, stocks are set for a firmer open following last night's selloff. Futures contracts tied to the S&P 500 are suggesting a 22-point opening bell gain and those linked to the Dow Jones Industrial Average indicating a 156-point advance.
The tech-focused Nasdaq, which is up 29.8% for the year, is called 107 points higher with Tesla ( TSLA ) , Nvidia ( NVDA ) and MicroStrategy ( MSTR ) active in early trading.
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In Europe, the Stoxx 600 was last marked 0.27% lower in Frankfurt, with many markets closing at midday for New Year's Eve celebrations. The regional benchmark is closing out its weakest quarter in two years and on pace for a meager full-year gain of 5.4%.
Britain's FTSE 100, meanwhile, was last marked 0.52% higher in a half-day session in London, but is also up only 5.7% for the year.
Overnight in Asia, the Nikkei 225 was closed for its traditional New Year holiday while the regionwide MSCI ex-Japan benchmark fell 0.52%, trimming its full-year gain to around 8%.
Related: Veteran fund manager issues dire S&P 500 warning for 2025
