Following the mixed performance seen in the previous session, stocks may move to the upside in early trading on Wednesday. The major index futures are currently pointing to a modestly higher open for the markets, with the S&P 500 futures up by 0.2 percent.
Energy stocks may help lead an early upward move on Wall Street amid a substantial rebound by the price of crude oil.
The price of crude oil is bouncing well off its lowest levels since early 2021 after President Donald Trump ordered a blockade of sanctioned oil tankers in Venezuela.
In a Truth Social post, Trump declared the government of President Nicolas Maduro a foreign terrorist organization and said he was ordering a "total and complete blockade of all sanctioned oil tankers" going into and leaving Venezuela.
Overall trading activity may be somewhat subdued, however, as traders look ahead to the release of a closely watched report on consumer price inflation on Thursday.
The Labor Department's report on consumer price inflation in the month of November could impact the outlook for interest rates.
After the lackluster performance seen during Monday's session, stocks continued to experience choppy trading on Tuesday. The major averages fluctuated over the course of the trading day before eventually closing on opposite sides of the unchanged line.
While the tech-heavy Nasdaq edged up 54.05 points or 0.2 percent to 23,111.46, the S&P 500 slipped 16.25 points or 0.2 percent to 6,800.26 and the Dow slid 302.30 points or 0.6 percent to 48,114.26.
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly higher during trading on Wednesday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index rose by 0.3 percent, while China's Shanghai Composite Index jumped by 1.2 percent.
Meanwhile, the major European markets have turned mixed on the day. While the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index is up by 1.6 percent, the German DAX Index is down by 0.2 percent and the French CAC 40 Index is down by 0.3 percent.
In commodities trading, crude oil futures are jumping $1.06 to $56.33 a barrel after plunging $1.55 to $55.27 a barrel on Tuesday. Meanwhile, an ounce of gold is trading at $4,365.70, up $33.40. compared to the previous session's close of $4,332.30. On Tuesday, gold slipped $2.90.
On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 155.44 yen compared to the 154.71 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Tuesday. Against the euro, the dollar is valued at $1.1724 compared to yesterday's $1.1746.
For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com
Business News
December 12, 2025 15:14 ET Central bank decisions dominated the economic news flow this week led by the Federal Reserve. Trade data from the U.S. also gained attention. The Canadian and Swiss central banks also announced their interest rate decisions. Inflation data from China was in focus as the country released the latest consumer price and producer price data.