Tonight’s Highlights | U.S. Index Futures All Lower, Bitcoin Once Plunges Over 7%
Monday pre-market: All three major U.S. index futures are down, with November’s choppy trading still in play. Major European indices are broadly lower.
Bitcoin broke below $85,000 intraday, down more than 7% in the past 24 hours. At the end of last month, Bitcoin fell below $90,000 for the first time since April this year and has since struggled to hold that level.
Markets have remained unsettled since AI bubble concerns heated up this autumn. The S&P 500 and Dow managed small gains in November, while the Nasdaq fell 1.5%, snapping a seven-month winning streak.
As December trading begins, seasonality favors Wall Street. According to the Stock Trader’s Almanac, the S&P 500 has averaged a gain of over 1% in December since 1950 — the third-best month of the year.
“Given that last week’s strong rebound improved breadth after the early-November weakness, I’m more optimistic about a positive return in December,” Fundstrat technical strategist Mark Newton wrote last week. “With rising odds of a December rate cut, stocks appear to be gradually regaining confidence.”
This week, investors will focus on data including November PMI and the ADP employment report. According to the CME FedWatch Tool, traders widely expect the Fed to deliver its third consecutive rate cut to support the labor market.
President Trump said Sunday that he has decided who will replace Fed Chair Powell but did not reveal the name. Prediction market bettors currently see White House National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett as the most likely nominee.
Tech stocks broadly lower pre-market, with Nvidia down over 1%.
Corporate News
HSBC partners with Mistral AI to accelerate generative AI adoption
On December 1, HSBC and French AI startup Mistral AI announced a strategic partnership to enhance and speed up the deployment of generative AI across the bank, enabling all employees to use it for tasks from financial analysis to translation.
Future focus areas will include client-facing innovations such as improving credit and lending processes and strengthening fraud and anti-money-laundering checks.
Airbus: “Vast majority” of aircraft affected by software issue already fixed
Airbus said in a December 1 statement that the vast majority of the roughly 6,000 A320-family aircraft affected by a software problem have completed the required modifications. The company is working with airline customers to support fixes on the remaining fewer than 100 aircraft so they can return to service.
On November 28 local time, an Airbus spokesperson said around 6,000 A320s needed urgent replacement of flight-control software vulnerable to solar radiation, following an incident involving a JetBlue aircraft in late October.
Airbus European shares once fell over 10%.