From the Desk - Economic Commentary
Brandon Casey, Member Strategies - 12/11/2025
U.S. stocks are mixed Thursday morning as tech earnings reignited concern for the sector. The DJIA is higher, while both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq are lower. Stocks finished higher Wednesday after the Fed cut interest rates, as expected. Regarding the future path of rates, Fed Chair Jerome Powell said the Fed would need to wait and see, but didn’t believe a rate hike was an option in the near future.
Looking at economic data today, initial jobless claims were up 44,000 to 236,000 last week, the biggest increase since 2020.Initial claims were expected to increase to 220,000. Continuing claims fell 99,000 to 1.838 million.
Elsewhere, the U.S. trade deficit fell 10.9% to $52.8 billion, the lowest level since 2020. The deficit was expected to increase to $63.3 billion. Imports were up 0.6% and exports rose 3.0%.
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