Stock market today: Live updates

Stock futures nudged up on Friday as traders awaited inflation data that could further inform the Federal Reserve’s upcoming interest rate decision.

Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 47 points, or 0.1%. S&P futures gained 0.2%, and Nasdaq 100 futures were up 0.3%.

Netflix shares fell more than 2% in the premarket following the streaming giant’s announcement that it’s struck a deal with Warner Bros. Discovery to buy its film and streaming assets for $72 billion. The deal is expected to close in 12 to 18 months.

Traders are keeping a close eye on a variety of economic data points, as the November payrolls report is scheduled to come out after the Fed’s Dec. 10 meeting.

The market will be able to sort through a fresh slate of economic releases on Friday.

The Commerce Department will release delayed September data on consumer spending and income as well as the personal consumption expenditures price index, the Fed’s primary inflation gauge. The PCE release was delayed due to the record-setting U.S. government shutdown and will give the Fed its final inflation view before Wednesday’s interest rate vote.

Also, the University of Michigan will also release its consumer survey for December on Friday, a report that provides a glimpse at sentiment as well as the view on inflation over the near and longer term.

In the previous session, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite closed slightly higher, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average ended the day just below the flatline. The tech-heavy Nasdaq closed its eighth positive session in nine, buoyed by a 3.4% gain in Meta shares and a 2.1% gain in Nvidia.

Investors earlier Thursday digested a report from job placement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas that showed job cuts in November moved further ahead of 1 million for the year, with corporate restructuring, artificial intelligence and tariffs contributing to the losses.

Thursday’s release of the latest weekly jobless claims numbers — which showed new applications for unemployment insurance at their lowest level since September 2022 — did not appear to impact the market’s view on where the Fed stands.

Investors are hoping that signs of a softening labor market will influence the central bank to lower its benchmark rate by a quarter percentage point at its next meeting. Traders are pricing in an 87% chance of a cut next Wednesday, far higher than just a couple weeks ago, according to the CME FedWatch tool. The key fed funds futures rate is currently targeted between 3.75%-4%, trading near the high end of that range amid ongoing pressures in short-term funding markets.

“The data is mixed that we’re getting, and you’re seeing different signals. Inflation is still sticky where it is,” Sonali Basak, iCapital chief investment strategist, said Thursday on CNBC’s “Closing Bell.” “2026 is a wild card as it pertains to inflation. No one has that crystal ball. And you have that with the labor market that has generally held up ‘low hire-low fire.’ If that tips over, then you’re in a pretty sticky spot next year.”

Stocks are managing to eke out slight gains this week. The S&P 500 is up 0.1%, while the Nasdaq and 30-stock Dow have added nearly 0.6% and 0.3%, respectively.