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S&P 500 eyes fresh record with PCE inflation on deck

Yahoo Finance•December 05, 2025 at 2:35 PM•Full Content

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Detected Companies & Sentiment

Netflix, Inc.

"mixed reaction to acquisition"

Gist

The S&P 500 nears a new record as markets anticipate the Fed's preferred inflation data, with strong bets on a rate cut and mixed labor signals.

LLM Summary

Wall Street rose on Friday as the S&P 500 and Nasdaq edged toward record highs, driven by expectations of a Fed rate cut and strong market sentiment. Investors await the delayed September PCE inflation data, while labor reports show a cooling but mixed job market. Netflix's $72B acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery caused stock volatility, and HPE fell sharply after missing earnings expectations.

Full Article Content

Stock market today: S&P 500, Nasdaq, Dow rise as Fed-favored PCE inflation data looms

=====================================================================================

Rian Howlett , Karen Friar and Laura Bratton

Updated Fri, December 5, 2025 at 4:32 PM GMT+2 2 min read

[^GSPC

+0.25%](/quote/%5EGSPC/ "^GSPC")

[ES=F

+0.08%](/quote/ES%3DF/ "ES=F")

[YM=F

+0.03%](/quote/YM%3DF/ "YM=F")

[NQ=F

+0.14%](/quote/NQ%3DF/ "NQ=F")

[^IXIC

+0.41%](/quote/%5EIXIC/ "^IXIC")

US stocks moved higher on Friday as Wall Street looked ahead to a delayed reading on inflation that could still help shape expectations for the Federal Reserve’s next policy move.

The S&P 500 (^GSPC) edged up 0.3%, while the Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) rose 0.4%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) gained nearly 0.2% following a mixed Thursday session.

DJI - Free Realtime Quote • USD

(^DJI)

======

47,914.28

+63.34

+(0.13%)

As of 9:35:20 AM EST. Market Open.

^DJI ^IXIC ^GSPC

The S&P 500 (^GSPC) is edging toward a fresh record high, after eking out three days of modest gains. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq (^IXIC) is eyeing its ninth positive close in 10 sessions, after Wall Street regained appetite for risk and faith in Fed easing.

Investors continue to bet heavily on a quarter-point interest rate cut from the central bank next Wednesday. Traders are pricing in 87% odds of a move lower, compared with 62% a month ago, according to CME FedWatch.

Given the higher confidence in an easing, focus has sharpened on labor and inflation data ahead of the Fed's Dec. 10 rate decision, especially given this Friday marks another month without the crucial jobs report.

Friday brings the September reading on the Fed's preferred inflation gauge, the PCE price index, also held up by the recent government shutdown. That is due at 10 a.m. ET. Other economic reports are on deck, including delayed September figures on personal spending and income, and the University of Michigan's snapshot of consumer sentiment in December.

A Challenger report on Thursday showed US companies cut 71,000 jobs last month, the worst November print since 2022. Yet new weekly jobless claims fell to their lowest since September 2022, reinforcing the picture of a labor market cooling gradually rather than rapidly.

Meanwhile, news landed that Netflix (NFLX) will buy Warner Bros. Discovery's (WBD) studios and its streaming unit for $72 billion, following a weeks-long bidding war. Netflix stock lost almost 3% in premarket trading, while WBD shares ticked higher.

In earnings, Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) stock sank almost 9% after the server maker's quarterly sales outlook missed high AI-fueled expectations.

Stock market today: S&P 500, Nasdaq, Dow rise as Fed-favored PCE inflation data looms
=====================================================================================

[Rian Howlett](/author/rian-howlett) , [Karen Friar](/author/karen-friar)  and [Laura Bratton](/author/laura-bratton)

Updated Fri, December 5, 2025 at 4:32 PM GMT+2 2 min read

[^GSPC

+0.25%](/quote/%5EGSPC/ "^GSPC")

[ES=F

+0.08%](/quote/ES%3DF/ "ES=F")

[YM=F

+0.03%](/quote/YM%3DF/ "YM=F")

[NQ=F

+0.14%](/quote/NQ%3DF/ "NQ=F")

[^IXIC

+0.41%](/quote/%5EIXIC/ "^IXIC")

US stocks moved higher on Friday as Wall Street looked ahead to a delayed reading on inflation that could still help shape expectations for the Federal Reserve’s next policy move.

The S&P 500 ([^GSPC](https://finance.yahoo.com/quote/^GSPC)) edged up 0.3%, while the Nasdaq Composite ([^IXIC](https://finance.yahoo.com/quote/^IXIC)) rose 0.4%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average ([^DJI](https://finance.yahoo.com/quote/^DJI)) gained nearly 0.2% following a [mixed Thursday session](https://finance.yahoo.com/news/live/stock-market-today-dow-sp-500-nasdaq-end-little-changed-as-wall-streets-fed-rate-cut-conviction-runs-high-210046639.html).

DJI - Free Realtime Quote • USD

(^DJI)
======

47,914.28

+63.34

+(0.13%)

As of 9:35:20 AM EST. Market Open.

^DJI ^IXIC ^GSPC

The S&P 500 ([^GSPC](https://finance.yahoo.com/quote/%5EGSPC)) is edging toward a fresh record high, after eking out three days of modest gains. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq ([^IXIC](https://finance.yahoo.com/quote/%5EIXIC)) is eyeing its ninth positive close in 10 sessions, after Wall Street regained appetite for risk and faith in Fed easing.

Investors continue to bet heavily on a quarter-point interest rate cut from the central bank next Wednesday. Traders are pricing in 87% odds of a move lower, compared with 62% a month ago, according to [CME FedWatch](https://www.cmegroup.com/markets/interest-rates/cme-fedwatch-tool.html).

Given the higher confidence in an easing, focus has sharpened on labor and inflation data ahead of the Fed's Dec. 10 rate decision, especially given this Friday marks another month [without the crucial jobs report](https://finance.yahoo.com/news/the-labor-market-is-not-going-to-give-any-straight-answers-anytime-soon-110037014.html).

Friday brings the September reading on the Fed's preferred inflation gauge, the PCE price index, also held up by the recent government shutdown. That is due at 10 a.m. ET. Other economic reports are on deck, including delayed September figures on personal spending and income, and the University of Michigan's snapshot of [consumer sentiment](https://finance.yahoo.com/news/us-sentiment-remains-dim-with-consumers-facing-higher-prices-and-weaker-incomes-152731499.html) in December.

A Challenger report on Thursday showed US companies [cut 71,000 jobs](https://finance.yahoo.com/news/job-market-mixed-bag-jobless-claims-drop-to-3-year-low-but-employers-shed-71000-jobs-in-worst-november-since-2022-124809562.html) last month, the worst November print since 2022. Yet new [weekly jobless claims](https://finance.yahoo.com/news/a-k-shaped-economy-has-investors-on-edge-bofa-says-it-may-hold-up-110013215.html) fell to their lowest since September 2022, reinforcing the picture of a labor market cooling gradually rather than rapidly.

Meanwhile, news landed that Netflix ([NFLX](https://finance.yahoo.com/quote/NFLX)) will [buy Warner Bros. Discovery's](https://finance.yahoo.com/news/netflix-to-acquire-warner-bros-in-72-billion-deal-125537621.html) ([WBD](https://finance.yahoo.com/quote/WBD)) studios and its streaming unit for $72 billion, following a weeks-long bidding war. Netflix stock lost almost 3% in premarket trading, while WBD shares ticked higher.

In [earnings](https://finance.yahoo.com/news/live/earnings-live-ulta-stock-pops-hpe-falls-with-guidance-in-focus-uipath-stock-skyrockets-213508470.html), Hewlett Packard Enterprise ([HPE](https://finance.yahoo.com/quote/HPE)) stock sank almost 9% after the server maker's quarterly [sales outlook missed](https://finance.yahoo.com/news/hpe-falls-outlook-disappoints-slower-091244116.html) high AI-fueled expectations.