NEW YORK, December 29, 2025, 06:53 ET — Premarket
- Apple shares fell 0.2% in premarket trading to $273.40.
- U.S. stock futures dipped to start the final holiday-shortened week of the year, with investors eyeing Fed minutes on Tuesday.
- Traders are watching rates and year-end positioning ahead of Apple’s next earnings window in late January.
Apple (AAPL.O) shares slipped 0.2% to $273.40 in premarket trading on Monday, as U.S. index futures eased at the start of the final holiday-shortened week of the year.
The timing matters because the S&P 500 and the Dow ended last week at record highs, leaving markets sensitive to any shift in interest-rate expectations heading into 2026.
Investors are also watching for a “Santa Claus rally,” a seasonal pattern of gains in the last five trading days of the year and the first two sessions of the new year, according to Stock Trader’s Almanac.
At 5:40 a.m. ET, Nasdaq 100 E-mini futures — contracts that track the Nasdaq 100 index — were down 0.40%, while S&P 500 E-minis fell 0.22% and Dow futures were flat, Reuters reported.
Megacap moves were mixed in early trading. Microsoft was down 0.04%, while Nvidia and Oracle were up about 1.0% and 0.3%, respectively.
Rate-cut bets have underpinned demand for higher-valuation growth stocks. “We’re not seeing runaway inflation risk as a base case,” said Becky Qin, a multi-asset portfolio manager at Fidelity International. Reuters
The Fed cut its main funds rate to a 3.5%-3.75% range this month, and money markets are pricing two further quarter-point cuts by September, Reuters reported.
Benchmark Treasury yields were slightly lower, with the U.S. 10-year yield around 4.11%, according to LSEG data carried by Reuters.
Apple’s market value stands at about $3.0 trillion, and the stock trades at roughly 30 times trailing earnings, levels that can amplify sensitivity to interest-rate swings.
The shares are about 5% below their 52-week high of $288.62, according to Reuters data.
Investors have also been tracking regulatory pressure on Apple’s App Store business, including an agreement in Brazil reached last week that requires Apple to allow third-party app stores and alternative payment processing on iOS in the country.
Markets’ next near-term test is Tuesday’s release of the Fed meeting minutes, followed by weekly jobless claims later in the week, Reuters reported.
For Apple, attention is likely to shift quickly to the next earnings catalyst. Yahoo Finance’s earnings calendar lists Apple reporting on January 29 after the close, though the company has not confirmed a date.
With holiday-thinned trading around year-end, Apple’s day-to-day moves often track broader risk appetite — and any repricing in the rate outlook that changes how investors value megacap tech.
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