November 24, 2025 — U.S. stocks extended their post-Thanksgiving rally on Monday, with major indexes climbing as investors bet on a December interest rate cut and technology shares led the charge.
The S&P 500 jumped 1.4% while the Nasdaq 100 soared more than 2%, marking strong gains across growth-oriented sectors. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose a modest 0.3%, reflecting mixed performance among blue-chip stocks.
Tech stocks power the rally
Alphabet emerged as the day’s biggest winner, surging approximately 5% after unveiling its Gemini 3 AI model to enthusiastic market reception. The Google parent company was the largest single contributor to S&P 500 gains, underscoring continued investor appetite for artificial intelligence innovation.
Nvidia added 1.2% on reports that U.S. officials may authorize sales of its H200 AI chips to China, potentially opening a significant new revenue stream. Tesla also rallied as CEO Elon Musk promoted the company’s advances in AI chip technology.
Chinese tech giant Alibaba saw its U.S.-listed shares gain 4.7% in Hong Kong trading, driven by strong demand for its updated Qwen AI application.
Rate cut expectations fuel optimism
The broader market rally gained momentum from shifting Federal Reserve expectations. The CME FedWatch tool now shows a 71% probability of a 25-basis-point rate cut in December, up sharply from 39.1% before recent comments from New York Fed President John Williams suggesting potential policy easing.
Lower interest rates typically benefit growth stocks by making future earnings more valuable in present terms, explaining much of the technology sector’s outperformance.
Retail stocks join the advance
Beyond technology, several retail and consumer stocks posted solid gains. TJX increased 2.3%, Lowe’s Companies rose 2.6%, and McDonald’s gained 1.7%, suggesting consumer resilience heading into the holiday shopping season.
Novo Nordisk suffers setback
The day’s most significant loser was Novo Nordisk, which plunged as much as 12.4% in Copenhagen after disappointing clinical trial results.
The pharmaceutical giant’s pill version of Ozempic failed to slow Alzheimer’s disease progression in trials, representing a major setback for the company’s pipeline diversification efforts.
As trading continues, investors are closely monitoring economic data and Fed communications for further clues about the central bank’s December policy decision.
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