Dow Jones Today (Dec. 26, 2025): DJIA Slips After Record Close as “Santa Rally” Meets Holiday-Thin Trading

NEW YORK — The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) is back in action on Friday, December 26, 2025, after U.S. markets were closed for Christmas Day. After notching a fresh record close in the pre-holiday session, the blue-chip index has cooled a touch in early post-Christmas trading, with liquidity expected to stay thin as many desks remain lightly staffed and large parts of Europe observe Boxing Day. ^[1]

At last check, the Dow’s real-time “derived” reading was hovering around 48,637, down roughly 0.2% (about 100 points) from the prior close, after the index last officially closed at 48,731.16. The day’s range has been roughly 48,386 to 48,771, underscoring how a modest push in either direction can still cover a lot of ground when volumes are light. ^[2]

A quick reset: what happened before the holiday

The most important “setup” for Dow Jones today is what happened on Wednesday, December 24 — a holiday-shortened session that ended with a record close for the DJIA.

According to Reuters, U.S. stocks finished higher in broad pre-Christmas strength, with the Dow rising 0.60% to 48,731.16, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq also advanced. Reuters also noted that trading volumes were thin and that U.S. markets were shut Thursday for Christmas. ^[3]

The NYSE calendar confirms the structure behind that quiet tape: markets closed early at 1:00 p.m. ET on Dec. 24 and then closed fully on Dec. 25. ^[4]

Dow Jones today: why the post-Christmas session matters

December 26 is not just “another day” in market folklore. A MarketWatch analysis citing Bespoke Investment Group points out that, historically, Dec. 26 has been among the most consistently positive days of the year for U.S. equities when markets are open, and it lands inside the widely watched seasonal window known as the “Santa Claus rally.” ^[5]

Reuters describes the Santa Claus rally as the stretch covering the last five trading days of the year and the first two sessions of January, a period traders watch closely because it’s often interpreted as a sentiment barometer heading into the new year. ^[6]

That’s the vibe. The reality, of course, is that markets remain markets: unpredictable, occasionally dramatic, and allergic to tidy narratives.

Overnight and early trading signals: futures were mixed

The lead-up to Friday’s open was more “shrug emoji” than fireworks.

Late Thursday evening, Investing.com reported U.S. stock futures ticking modestly higher in thin post-holiday trade, with Dow futures up around 0.1% at the time of that report. ^[7]
By early Friday, TipRanks reported futures edging lower, with Dow-linked futures down about 0.15% around 3:33 a.m. ET, reflecting the kind of small, choppy moves typical of holiday liquidity. ^[8]
A TradingView brief similarly framed the tone as slightly softer futures as Wall Street reopened after Christmas. ^[9]

Those cues line up with what you’re seeing in the cash index: a modest pullback from record territory rather than a decisive trend day.

What’s driving the Dow Jones on Dec. 26, 2025?

1) Holiday-thin liquidity (and why it can exaggerate moves)

Holiday trading is like steering a ship with fewer crew on deck: nothing has to go wrong, but small forces can matter more.

Reuters’ global markets wrap notes that many markets in Europe are closed and liquidity is expected to be thin. ^[10] That matters for the Dow because a lower-volume session can make index moves feel “jumpy,” especially since the DJIA is price-weighted (higher-priced component stocks can swing the index more than lower-priced ones).

2) The rate-cut narrative is still the gravitational field

Even when the economic calendar is quiet, the market’s favorite long-running series — “What will the Fed do next?” — keeps playing.

In the Dec. 24 record-close recap, Reuters reported that the market was pricing in roughly 50 basis points of Fed rate cuts next year, even as expectations for a near-term cut were considered low. ^[11]

Meanwhile, Reuters’ Dec. 26 global wrap reported traders looking toward rate cuts in 2026, with markets sensitive to both the timing and magnitude of any future easing. ^[12]

For the Dow today, that translates into a familiar push-pull:

Lower expected rates can support equities (by boosting valuations and easing financing pressure).
Uncertainty about the path can keep traders cautious, especially near record highs.

TipRanks also pegged the 10-year Treasury yield around 4.15% in early Friday framing — a level that matters because it competes with equities for investor attention and influences discount rates used in valuing stocks. ^[13]

3) Commodities are loud right now: gold hits records, oil nudges higher

Even if you never buy a single ounce of anything shiny, commodities can still shape equity sentiment.

Gold: Reuters reported gold surging to a record high, citing safe-haven demand and rising expectations of further Fed cuts, with spot gold above $4,500/oz in early Asian trading. ^[14]

Oil: Reuters also reported oil prices ticking higher on supply-risk headlines and geopolitics, while still being on track for their sharpest annual decline since 2020 (a reminder that “up today” can still mean “down big this year”). ^[15]

Why does this matter for the Dow? Energy and industrial bellwethers inside the DJIA can react to oil’s direction, while gold’s surge can be read as a “risk temperature” signal — either a hedge against uncertainty or a bet on easier policy and a weaker dollar. (It can be both. Markets contain multitudes.)

4) Global risk mood: stocks bid in Asia, dollar softer

Reuters described Asian equities rising to a six-week high, with a year-end risk bid even as holiday closures thin liquidity, and it flagged a softer dollar as investors focus on U.S. rate expectations and Fed leadership uncertainty. ^[16]

A “risk-on” tone abroad doesn’t automatically lift the Dow, but it often helps set the emotional thermostat for U.S. trading — particularly on quiet days when there isn’t a blockbuster U.S. data release to dominate the narrative.

Dow components in focus: Nike and Intel stayed on traders’ radar

Because the DJIA is made of just 30 blue-chip stocks, company-specific headlines can matter.

In Wednesday’s record-close session recap, Reuters highlighted:

Nike rising after disclosure tied to Apple CEO Tim Cook buying about $3 million in Nike shares. ^[17]
Intel dipping amid reporting related to Nvidia and Intel’s manufacturing process testing. ^[18]

Even when those exact catalysts are “yesterday’s news,” they often keep the same names on watchlists heading into the next session — especially in thin markets where leadership can narrow quickly.

Key Dow Jones levels investors are watching

With the Dow near record territory, the “levels story” becomes simple: traders are gauging whether the post-holiday tape can hold near highs into year-end.

Investing.com lists the DJIA’s 52-week range as roughly 36,612 to 48,887. With the index recently closing at 48,731 and trading around the 48,600s today, it’s still parked near the upper edge of that band. ^[19]

That proximity is why headlines can feel dramatic even on a -0.2% day: at these levels, every small move happens in the shadow of an all-time high.

What to watch for the rest of Friday

The economic calendar is light — but markets still get “data”

If you’re expecting a big, market-moving U.S. macro print on Dec. 26, you’ll probably be disappointed (or relieved).

FRED’s release calendar for Friday, Dec. 26, lists mostly financial-rate and market-stat releases (for example, SOFR, Selected Interest Rates (H.15), and “Dow Jones Averages” updates among scheduled releases), rather than top-tier growth or inflation data. ^[20]

In other words: today is more about positioning, rebalancing, and narrative than about a single economic number.

Watch liquidity, not just direction

In a thin session, the more interesting question is often not “up or down,” but “how clean is the move?”

If the Dow drifts lower on low volume, traders may treat it as a normal breather after a record.
If it swings sharply on relatively small news, that can be a holiday-liquidity artifact rather than a true change in fundamentals.

One more practical note: yes, U.S. markets are open today

There was some confusion earlier this month after a U.S. federal government closure order tied to the days around Christmas, but Reuters reported that major U.S. exchanges stuck with their trading calendar — including a regular full day of trading on December 26. ^[21]

The bottom line on the Dow Jones today

The Dow Jones Industrial Average is starting Dec. 26 in “post-party cleanup” mode: still near record highs after Wednesday’s milestone close, but softer in early trading as the Santa Claus rally window continues under holiday-thin liquidity. ^[22]

The headlines shaping the day are less about fresh U.S. economic data and more about the market’s big background forces: rate-cut expectations, global risk sentiment, and eye-catching moves in commodities — especially record precious metals and a modest uptick in oil amid supply-risk news. ^[23]