US close: S&P 500 hits new high after fourth straight gain
By Benjamin Chiou
Date: Tuesday 23 Dec 2025
(Sharecast News) - US stocks rose for the fourth straight day on Tuesday, shrugging off a shaky start, with the S&P 500 closing at a new record high as the Santa rally picks up steam.
Markets were struggling for direction shortly early on after economic data revealed that the US economic growth accelerated much more than predicted in the third quarter, quashing hopes for another rate cut from the Federal Reserve in early 2026.
However, it didn't take long for indices to push into positive territory, extending gains ahead of the closing bell. The S&P 500 rose 0.5% to hit a new closing high of 6,909.79, while the Dow gained 0.2% and the Nasdaq finished up 0.6%.
"GDP data can only show us where things were, not where things are going, which means investors will step into another year with more questions than answers," said AJ Bell's head of financial analysis Danni Hewson.
"But despite lingering concerns about tariffs, ongoing geopolitical uncertainty, nerves about a potential AI bubble and a myriad of cost of living concerns, many indices will have enjoyed a record-breaking year - and there's still time for a Santa rally to top things off in style."
Economic data takes centre stage
The US economy expanded at an annualised rate of 4.3% in third quarter, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis, accelerating from the 3.8% expansion in April-June, driven by higher consumer and government spending along with exports. Q3's preliminary reading, which was postponed due to the Federal government shutdown, beat forecasts of 3.3%.
US durable goods orders decreased 2.2% to $307.4bn in October, according to the Census Bureau, more than erasing September's upwardly revised 0.7% increase. September's larger-than-expected decline comes as orders for transportation equipment fell 6.5% to $103.8bn, while non-defence and defence aircraft orders fell 20.1% to $17.4bn and 32.4% to $6.1bn, respectively.
US capacity utilisation edged up to 76.0% in November, according to the Federal Reserve, but remained 3.5 points below its long-term average, while industrial production increased 0.2%, slightly ahead of the 0.1% expected.
Lastly, the Conference Board's US consumer confidence index declined by 3.8 points in December to 89.1, with the present situation index plummeting by 9.5 points to 116.8, while the expectations index held steady at 70.7.
Market movers
Mining stocks were performing well as commodity prices continued to rise, with gold, silver and copper in particular reaching new records. Freeport McMoRan, Newmont and Foran all finished with solid gains.
US-listed shares of Denmark's Novo Nordisk surged 7% after the US Food and Drug Administration approved the pill form of its Wegovy weight loss drug. The Wegovy pill - the first oral glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonist therapy approved for weight management - is expected to be launched in the US in early January.
Travel stocks were falling sharply as oil prices continued to rebound after the recent sell-off, with WTI crude rising for the fifth straight day since settling at a four-year low. Norwegian, Alaska Air, American Airlines and Royal Carribean all finished firmly in the red.
Dow Jones - Risers
JP Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM) $325.91 0.88%
Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $113.24 0.75%
Apple Inc. (AAPL) $272.36 0.51%
Chevron Corp. (CVX) $150.57 0.47%
Visa Inc. (V) $353.44 0.37%
American Express Co. (AXP) $382.51 0.35%
Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) $143.24 0.34%
International Business Machines Corporation (CDI) (IBM) $304.08 0.33%
Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $105.16 0.31%
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $902.23 0.30%
Dow Jones - Fallers
Dow Chemical Co. (DOW) $22.87 -2.22%
McDonald's Corp. (MCD) $310.86 -1.70%
Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) $205.77 -0.74%
Coca-Cola Co. (KO) $69.85 -0.48%
Salesforce.Com Inc. (CRM) $263.51 -0.45%
Home Depot Inc. (HD) $345.17 -0.41%
Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $39.92 -0.15%
Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $78.02 -0.12%
Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $325.20 -0.11%
Intel Corp. (INTC) $36.35 -0.05%
S&P 500 - Risers
Apartment Investment & Management Co. (AIV) $5.78 3.02%
Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) $189.21 3.01%
Freeport-McMoRan Inc (FCX) $51.93 2.49%
Coterra Energy Inc. (CTRA) $25.97 1.80%
Perrigo Company plc (PRGO) $13.63 1.71%
Amazon.Com Inc. (AMZN) $232.14 1.62%
Dominion Energy Inc. (D) $58.15 1.61%
Affiliated Mgrs Group (AMG) $291.55 1.61%
Motorola Solutions Inc (MSI) $378.62 1.52%
Philip Morris International Inc. (PM) $162.11 1.48%
S&P 500 - Fallers
Brown Forman Corp. Class B (BF.B) $26.63 -5.20%
Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd (NCLH) $23.15 -4.78%
Alaska Air Group Inc. (ALK) $51.17 -4.30%
Coty Inc. Class A (COTY) $3.00 -4.14%
American Airlines Group (AAL) $15.60 -4.06%
Advance Auto Parts (AAP) $39.38 -3.12%
Gap Inc. (GAP) $26.41 -2.87%
Idexx Laboratories Inc. (IDXX) $682.31 -2.82%
Royal Caribbean Cr (RCL) $292.35 -2.81%
Starbucks Corp. (SBUX) $83.86 -2.68%
Nasdaq 100 - Risers
Biomarin Pharmaceutical Inc. (BMRN) $61.14 3.14%
Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) $189.21 3.01%
Amazon.Com Inc. (AMZN) $232.14 1.62%
Alphabet Inc. Class A (GOOGL) $314.35 1.48%
Vodafone Group Plc ADS (VOD) $13.06 1.40%
Alphabet Inc. Class C (GOOG) $315.68 1.40%
T-Mobile Us, Inc. (TMUS) $197.67 0.98%
Western Digital Corp. (WDC) $178.25 0.84%
Gilead Sciences Inc. (GILD) $125.19 0.83%
Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. (REGN) $785.17 0.75%
Nasdaq 100 - Fallers
American Airlines Group (AAL) $15.60 -4.06%
Idexx Laboratories Inc. (IDXX) $682.31 -2.82%
Starbucks Corp. (SBUX) $83.86 -2.68%
Dollar Tree Inc (DLTR) $119.51 -2.43%
Kraft Heinz Co. (KHC) $23.70 -1.86%
Trip.com Group Limited (TCOM) $72.48 -1.74%
DENTSPLY Sirona Inc. (XRAY) $11.08 -1.60%
Align Technology Inc. (ALGN) $156.76 -1.58%
Ulta Salon, Cosmetics & Fragrance Inc. (ULTA) $604.09 -1.45%
Henry Schein Inc. (HSIC) $76.50 -1.39%
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