Stock Market Today, Dec. 31: Lackluster Year End Barely Dents 2025's Double Digit Gains

After a year with double-digit gains across the major indexes, light New Year’s Eve trading extended a late‑December pullback today. The S&P 500 (SNPINDEX:^GSPC) fell 0.74% to 6,845.50, the Nasdaq Composite (NASDAQINDEX:^IXIC) lost 0.76% to 23,241.99, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJINDEX: ^DJI) slipped 0.63% to 48,063.29.

Market movers

Chinese EV makers Nio (NYSE:NIO) and Xpeng (NYSE:XPEV) were among notable Nasdaq decliners today. Nio erased some of yesterday's gains, but still finished the week in the green. Rate‑sensitive real‑estate‑linked stocks such as Prologis (NYSE:PLD) slipped as investors weighed Fed minutes and 10‑year Treasury yields near 4.14%.

What this means for investors

While the hoped-for end-of-year failed to materialize, the S&P 500 still finished the year up 16% -- it's third consecutive year in the green. The Nasdaq Composite and the Dow Jones gained 20% and 13% respectively. Cryptocurrencies did not fare so well with Bitcoin (CRYPTO:BTC) ending 2025 down over 6%.

AI and data-center enthusiasm drove a lot of the upward momentum, with data storage specialists Sandisk (NASDAQ:SNDK) and Seagate Technology (NASDAQ:STX) among the biggest gainers. Gold finished the year up almost 65%, while silver gained 170% this year as investors sought safe havens against geopolitical uncertainty.

The big question for 2026 is whether markets can continue to trend upwards. Traders will be paying attention to job and inflation data for clues on any Federal Reserve rate cuts and wider economic moves.

Emma Newbery has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Bitcoin and Prologis. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.