Market Recap of the Week of Dec 21, 2025 - Dec 28, 2025

Overall Market Trends:

The market rebounded last week, with all four major indices trending upwards throughout the week. The New York Stock Exchange Composite (NYSE) rose 317 points (+1.45%), the S&P 500 increased 95 points (+1.39%), the NASDAQ Composite climbed 285 points (+1.22%), and the Dow Jones Industrial Average posted a weekly gain of 579 points (+1.20%).

Stocks rose on Monday, boosted by the artificial intelligence trade. Reuters reported that Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA) is eyeing the middle of February to begin shipments of its H200 chips to China. This news sent Nvidia up over 1%, with other large companies in the A.I. sector, such as Micron Technology (NASDAQ: MU) and Oracle (NYSE: ORCL), up 4% and 3%, respectively.

This positive sentiment carried into Tuesday’s trading session, with A.I. stocks continuing to act as catalysts for broader market gains. Broadcom (NASDAQ: AVGO) rose 2% on the day, and Nvidia rose roughly 3%. The Commerce Department finally reported that the U.S. economy expanded by an astounding 4.3% pace in Q3, far exceeding the 3.2% expectation. This comes after ongoing delays due to the record-breaking government shutdown. While stocks dipped to start the day as the report spooked investors, they later rebounded, with many still believing that the Federal Reserve will continue to lower interest rates in the upcoming year.

Markets continued to rise during Wednesday’s Christmas Eve-shortened session. Nike (NYSE: NKE) rose 4.6% after Tim Cook, Apple CEO, disclosed that he had purchased shares in the company. Micron and Citigroup (NYSE: C) also posted relatively significant gains, rising 3.8% and 1.8%, respectively.

Markets were closed on Thursday for Christmas Day and resumed on Friday, closing little changed.

Past Earnings Report:

This Week in Crypto

Market Trends:

The crypto market traded sideways and slightly lower throughout last week, with major coins struggling to gain momentum amid thin year-end conditions. Total crypto market cap slipped by roughly 0.5 percent over the past week, while trading volume declined much more sharply: around 20%. Bitcoin (BTC) hovered in the high-$80,000 range and finished the week at $87,636 (-0.70%), while Ethereum (ETH) fell to $2,940 (-1.17%). Solana (SOL) also declined 1.23% to $124.24. Dogecoin (DOGE) saw heavier losses, falling 6.26% to $0.1238, and Cardano (ADA) ended the week down 2.05% at $0.3662. Price moves remained relatively small across the market, largely due to falling liquidity, continued ETF outflows, and cautious risk management by investors heading into year-end.

One of the main factors limiting price movement last week was the sharp drop in market liquidity. Overall trading volume fell by more than 20 percent as participation wavered, keeping price moves relatively small. Spot trading, or trading at market price for the instant delivery of an asset, on major exchanges also declined, making it more difficult for prices to move significantly in either direction. It is also important to note that leverage has not yet fully left the market, as derivative positions continued to remain elevated.

Spot Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs continued to experience net outflows despite prices remaining largely stable, indicating that investors or holders have started to reduce their holdings of the ETFs in a profit-taking manner. In the absence of consistent inflows to sustain rallies, Bitcoin struggled to push convincingly above resistance near $90,000, ultimately capping upside. Derivative markets continued to be active despite funding rates remaining close to neutral. This implied that rather than committing to a definite bullish or bearish trend, traders were more concerned with short-term positioning, which allowed Bitcoin to serve as a stabilizing force for the larger market and reduce volatility.

Macro conditions did little to offset these pressures. The longer-term outlook for risk assets was supported by recent US GDP data, which came in better than anticipated, and the ongoing decline in inflation. Although there were brief increases as a result of these developments, there was little follow-through. Throughout the week, investor sentiment remained cautious, with low conviction and fear continuing to rule. As a result, despite generally positive economic data, risk appetite stayed low.

Altcoins faced additional challenges on top of this backdrop. Bitcoin dominance remained elevated as capital stayed concentrated in larger assets, leaving less room for rotation into more volatile names. Several projects also saw token unlocks during the week, which added supply to an already thin market. Combined with ETF rotation and year-end liquidity constraints, these factors made it difficult for mid-cap and smaller tokens to recover. Most altcoins continued to lag and trade defensively due to fewer strong catalysts and fading participation.

Live Crypto Markets:

Looking Towards the Future

Upcoming Important Economic Events:

Monday: Pending home sales
Tuesday: S&P Case-Shiller home price index (20 cities) • Minutes of Fed's December FOMC meeting • Chicago Business Barometer (PMI)
Wednesday: Initial jobless claims
Thursday: Markets Closed for New Year’s Day
Friday: S&P final U.S. manufacturing

Future Earnings Reports:

Market Recap (12/28/25)