The main indicator of fear on Wall Street - the volatility index Cboe (VIX) - during the year experienced rapid fluctuations, but by the end of 2025 <a href="https://www.marketwatch.com/investing/index/vix?mod=home_markets">reached</a> an annual minimum, the publication MarketWatch paid <a href="https://www.marketwatch.com/story/wall-streets-fear-gauge-shows-investors-feeling-confident-heading-into-2026-and-overlooking-some-big-risks-95fbf04d?mod=home_lead">attention</a>. During trading on Tuesday, December 23, the index lost another 0.57% and closed at 14 points, its lowest level since December 2024.

'Too wonderful': Wall Street's 'fear index' at a one-year low. What's next?

Sapporo Holdings Limited

KKR & Co. Inc.

Gold, silver and platinum are hitting all-time highs amid demand for safe-haven assets and expectations of rate cuts in the US. Washington postpones the introduction of duties on Chinese semiconductors until 2027. These and other topics - in our review of key events in the morning of December 24.

Highlights for the morning: precious metals records, U.S. duty pause against China, Motive IPOs

NVIDIA Corporation

Broadcom Inc.

Gold also hit an all-time high amid a falling dollar

The S&amp;P 500 has a new record and a fourth straight day of gains. Has Santa's rally begun?

The bank advises to diversify portfolios and not to abandon gold

UBS names three catalysts for continued stock market growth in 2026

When everyone has already bet on a rally, it's easier for stocks to fall, warns Roundhill Financial

The optimism of U.S. equity strategists has made investors nervous. What are they worried about?

Steve Iceman now sees the same threat that collapsed the mortgage market in the US 

A Game of Thumb investor named the top two risks to the AI sector in 2026

Suntory Beverage & Food Limited

The People's Bank of China keeps rates unchanged despite weak data and the lingering real estate crisis, while industrial and precious metals are hitting all-time highs. These and other topics are in our review of key events for the morning of December 22.

Highlights for the morning: China's central bank kept rates on hold, copper and gold hit records

Oracle Corporation

The S&amp;P 500 managed to come out in the plus side at the end of the week

"Santa Claus rally will surprise no one": major US indices rose for the second day in a row

Investing in small-cap stocks could prove a winning strategy in 2026, <a href="https://www.barrons.com/articles/small-cap-stocks-earnings-interest-rates-2f7c13f7?mod=RTA">writes</a>&nbsp;<i>Barron’s</i>. Over the past month, the <a href="https://finance.yahoo.com/quote/%5ESP600/">S&amp;P SmallCap 600 index</a> has outperformed the large-cap <a href="https://finance.yahoo.com/quote/%5EGSPC/">S&amp;P 500</a> by a wide margin. Analysts believe small-cap momentum could continue next year, supported by potential further Fed rate cuts, lower borrowing costs, and stronger economic activity.

'Let the good times keep rolling': Barron's highlights drivers for small caps in 2026

BlackBerry Limited

NIKE, Inc.

KB Home

FedEx Corporation

Apple Inc.

Accenture plc

lululemon athletica inc.

Woodside Energy Group Ltd

Cintas Corporation

Daily review and forecast of events on the U.S. stock market from Mikhail Denislamov, Deputy Director of Freedom Capital Markets Research.

New York morning: 'witching days' provoke turbulence

Micron Technology, Inc.

The main U.S. index S&amp;P 500 returned to growth after four consecutive days of decline due to the fact that the data on inflation was not as bad as the market expected, <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2025/12/17/stock-market-today-live-updates.html">writes</a> CNBC. This strengthened investors' hopes for further easing of monetary policy by the Federal Reserve in 2026. Micron's report also gave confidence to the technology sector.