Traders work on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange in New York City, U.S., Dec. 17, 2025. <\/p>\n
Brendan McDermid | Reuters<\/p>\n
The S&P 500<\/a> snapped a four-day slide on Thursday, boosted by lighter-than-expected inflation data that brightened the outlook for lower interest rates in 2026 and blowout guidance from chipmaker Micron Technology<\/a>.<\/p>\n The broad market index jumped 0.79% to settle at 6,774.76, while the Nasdaq Composite<\/a> advanced 1.38% to 23,006.36. The Dow Jones Industrial Average<\/a> gained 65.88 points, or 0.14%, to end the day at 47,951.85.<\/p>\n The delayed November consumer price index report \u2014 the first since the U.S. government shutdown ended<\/a> last month \u2014 showed headline annual inflation of 2.7%, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, below the 3.1% that economists polled by Dow Jones had expected. The 12-month rate for core CPI, which excludes food and energy, was 2.6%, was also lower than the Dow Jones forecast of 3%.<\/p>\n The report was pushed back from its original release date of Dec. 10. The BLS had canceled the release of the October inflation report<\/a> in late November as a result of the longest-ever shutdown, meaning that Thursday’s reading did not have all the usual data points of a standard CPI report.<\/p>\n Given the lack of October comparison data, economists might not place too much significance<\/a> on this reading as the beginning of a downward trend in inflation, and some have even raised concerns<\/a> around the calculations for housing inflation. Nonetheless, stocks extended their gains after the report, as initial jobless claims<\/a> were below what economists had estimated as well.<\/p>\n “Those [owners’ equivalent rent] numbers and everything were kind of back to almost pre-Covid levels in terms of the appreciation,” David Waddell, CEO and chief investment strategist at Waddell & Associates, told CNBC. “Perhaps there’ll be some adjustments, but I think at the moment, [the report] is saying inflation is under control.”<\/p>\n