The standout event of the day is likely the Dow Jones setting a new all-time high, possibly achieving both an intraday and closing record. The index reached a new zenith at 48,565, up 1% in the wake of strong performances from Visa (+4.4%) and Home Depot (+2.8%).
The Paris stock exchange nearly matched this feat, rising 0.9% to 8,100 and asserting itself as the leader among European markets following the U.S. Federal Reserve's decision to continue its cycle of interest rate cuts. The CAC40 advanced by 0.8% (to around 8,085), while London and Zurich remained flat and Frankfurt gained 0.75% (to 24,300).
The 0.85% rise in the E-Stoxx50 owes much to French stocks, particularly Carrefour and St Gobain (both up 4.2%), and CapGemini (+4.5%).
On Wall Street, performance was mixed the day after the Federal Reserve's unsurprising announcement: the so-called "Santa rally" seemed underway until Oracle soured the mood with disappointing quarterly results. Broad U.S. indices pulled back from their all-time highs due to Oracle's near 14% plunge, which led to a 0.4% decline in the S&P 500 and a 1.15% drop in the Nasdaq.
On the U.S. data front, mostly "secondary" releases were in focus. Wholesale inventories rose 0.5% in September 2025 compared to the previous month, according to the Commerce Department, following a 0.1% decline in August. Wholesale sales fell 0.2% in September (after a similar 0.2% decrease in August, marking a three-month slide).
Weekly jobless claims in the United States increased by 45,000 last week, according to figures published Thursday by the Department of Labor, while economists had expected an average of 220,000 claims. The four-week moving average now stands at 216,750, up from 214,750 (revised) the previous week. However, the number of people regularly receiving unemployment benefits fell to 1.838 million.
Following its final monetary policy meeting of the year, the Fed on Wednesday cut its key interest rates by a quarter-point as expected, but also lowered its inflation forecast (to 2.5% from 2.6%) and announced an immediate return to balance sheet expansion via Treasury Bill purchases.
While Chairman Jerome Powell did not adopt a particularly dovish tone during his press conference, he also avoided sounding overly hawkish, emphasizing that a rate hike was not on anyone's agenda within the FOMC.
The institution also raised its growth forecasts, while noting a weakening labor market--a "Goldilocks" scenario that could justify further credit cost reductions next year.
"The Fed will therefore continue its rate-cutting cycle, and next week's inflation and employment data will determine the scale and timing of the move," said Bastien Drut, Head of Strategy and Economic Research at CPRAM.
With the end of the year typically a favorable period for equities, the outlook now appears clear thanks to hopes for monetary policy easing, meaning December's traditional window-dressing can gain momentum.
"As I've said before--and at the risk of repeating myself--we are currently facing one of the most bullish cocktails imaginable for risk assets," said Michael Brown, market analyst at Pepperstone.
"When you add in the fear of missing out (FOMO), extremely favorable seasonality, and massive corporate buybacks, it's clear the most obvious dynamic remains decidedly bullish," he added.
"I remain calmly confident that the S&P 500 can reach the 7,000-point mark by year-end," the strategist asserted.
With the Fed hurdle now cleared, the S&P 500 looks well-positioned to notch an eighth consecutive monthly gain in December, which would be a first in more than 25 years.
As expected, U.S. yields fell after the Fed's decision, with the 10-year note yield dropping 5 basis points to around 4.123%. In Europe, OATs and Bunds slipped by 1.3 basis points and ended little changed.
The dollar declined against most currencies (an average of 60.45%) following the Fed's perceived dovish tone, allowing the euro to climb (+0.6%) above 1.175 against the greenback.
Oil prices fell sharply after a smaller-than-expected drop in U.S. crude inventories. Brent lost 2.2% to $61.2 a barrel, while U.S. light crude (West Texas Intermediate, WTI) dropped 2.5% to $57.25.
Appetite for risk assets was dampened by Oracle's weaker-than-expected quarterly results. "It's not just their earnings that are worrying, but also the scale of their debt and their inability to reassure the market about their capacity to finance massive investment projects," commented one trader, referring to the week ending November 29 (the latest week for which data is available), compared to 1.937 million the previous week.
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