Dow Jones Market Update 2025 – Stocks Slip as Gold & Silver Prices Rebound

U.S. equities edged lower Tuesday, extending losses from the start of the holiday-shortened week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average and Nasdaq each fell 0.2%, while the S&P 500 dipped 0.1%, showing muted reaction to the Federal Reserve’s December meeting minutes, which revealed divisions over the latest rate cut.

Housing data added mixed signals, with the S&P Case-Shiller home price index rising 1.3% year-over-year in October, slightly above forecasts but easing from the prior month’s pace. Tech stocks remained under pressure as investors worried about capital spending, with Tesla, Palantir, Oracle, and Nvidia sliding between 1.2% and 3.3% Monday. On Tuesday, Tesla, Palantir, and Nvidia were modestly lower, while Oracle gained 1.4%.

In contrast, Intel surged 2% after filings confirmed Nvidia’s $5 billion share purchase, while Boeing advanced 1.3% on news of an $8.58 billion Pentagon contract to build fighter jets for Israel. Meta Platforms also rose 1.3% after acquiring Singapore-based AI startup Manus for more than $2 billion.

Commodities rebounded sharply. Gold futures climbed 1% to $4,380 an ounce, while silver jumped nearly 10% to $77.35, recovering from Monday’s steep drop. The 10-year Treasury yield ticked up to 4.13%, Bitcoin traded at $88,200, the U.S. dollar index rose to 98.20, and WTI crude oil slipped to $58 per barrel.

On the penultimate trading day of the year, the S&P 500 showed little movement overall, slipping about 0.1%, but the Energy Sector stood out as the strongest performer among the 11 tracked industries.

Energy shares rose 0.8%, led by Occidental Petroleum (OXY) up 2.6%, Diamondback Energy (FANG) up 2.2%, and Devon Energy (DVN) up 1.8% late in the session. Meanwhile, consumer discretionary stocks dragged the index lower with a 0.4% decline, offsetting some of the energy sector’s momentum.

For many recent bachelor’s degree graduates, the job market has become increasingly difficult to navigate. With tariffs slowing company hiring and AI replacing entry-level positions, more students are turning to graduate school as a pathway to stronger career prospects.

The labor market’s weakness has created a “low-hire, low-fire” environment, pushing graduates to seek advanced degrees. Yet certain fields stand out for their resilience. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, demand is expected to rise sharply for substance abuse, behavioral disorder, and mental health counselors. Likewise, lawyers and career counselors are projected to enjoy abundant opportunities in the coming years.

Boeing (BA) led the Dow Jones Industrial Average Tuesday, with shares climbing about 2% after securing an $8.58 billion U.S. Department of Defense contract to build fighter jets for the Israeli Air Force.

The deal covers the design, integration, testing, and production of 25 new F-15IA aircraft, with an option for an additional 25. Work will be carried out in St. Louis, Missouri, and is scheduled for completion by December 31, 2035.

Boeing shares have already gained more than 25% in 2025, boosted earlier this month when CFO Jay Malave highlighted recovery progress, including plans to ramp up 737 and 787 deliveries and expectations of strong free cash flow growth in 2026.

Intel (INTC) led the Nasdaq gainers Tuesday, climbing 3% after filings confirmed that Nvidia (NVDA) completed its $5 billion share purchase announced in September.

According to Intel’s Form 8-K filing with the SEC, the company issued and sold 214,776,632 shares to Nvidia at $23.28 per share last Friday.

Intel stock, which was replaced in the Dow Jones Industrial Average by Nvidia in late 2024, has soared nearly 90% in 2025. Nvidia shares edged 0.2% lower Tuesday, though they remain up about 40% year-to-date.

Gold investors saw an extraordinary 65% surge in 2025, with spot prices hitting a record $4,560 per troy ounce before retreating slightly. The metal’s safe-haven appeal thrived amid geopolitical and economic uncertainty, echoing the inflation-driven rallies of the late 1970s and early 1980s.

Despite profit-taking and higher margin requirements that briefly cooled momentum, gold rebounded to around $4,400. Analysts expect the rally to moderate in 2026, but note that the only scenario likely to push prices lower is stronger-than-expected global growth. Conversely, a global slowdown could reignite demand, driving fresh highs.

Analysts project that Tesla (TSLA) will deliver significantly fewer vehicles in Q4 2025 compared to last year. Consensus estimates from 20 sell-side analysts point to 422,850 deliveries, a 15% year-over-year decline, while Visible Alpha forecasts 434,490 deliveries, representing a 12% drop.

For the full year, Tesla expects about 1.65 million deliveries, down 8.3% from 2024’s 1.79 million. Visible Alpha’s forecast is slightly lower at 1.64 million vehicles.

Despite the weaker outlook, Tesla shares were little changed after the announcement, suggesting investors had already priced in softer demand.

CNBC’s Mad Money host Jim Cramer is urging caution after a massive run-up in AI and tech stocks throughout 2025. He warned on the Investopedia Express podcast that many companies tied to quantum computing, autonomous vehicles, and data center buildouts have soared too high on hype and are likely due for a pullback.

Cramer described 2025 as “the year of magical investing” but believes that era is ending. Rather than exiting the market, he recommends investors rotate into blue-chip companies that are using AI to transform their businesses, rather than those simply building AI systems.

Meta Platforms (META) has strengthened its artificial intelligence portfolio by acquiring Singapore-based startup Manus for more than $2 billion, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Manus develops AI agents capable of independently executing complex tasks such as market research, coding, and data analysis. Meta plans to integrate these services into its broader ecosystem, enhancing the functionality of its platforms like Facebook and Instagram.

Despite the announcement, Meta shares were little changed, though they remain up 13% year-to-date in 2025.

Shares of EKSO Bionics Holdings (EKSO) surged more than 40% in premarket trading Tuesday after Applied Digital (APLD) announced plans to spin off its cloud computing business and merge it with EKSO.

The combined company will be called ChronoScale Corporation, designed to deliver high-performance GPU computing at scale for next-generation AI workloads. The move positions EKSO, previously valued at under $15 million, for a significant market revaluation.

Meanwhile, Applied Digital shares rose nearly 3%, reflecting investor optimism about the deal’s potential to address capacity constraints in the AI infrastructure market.

A new survey from Manulife John Hancock Retirement highlights the gap between Gen Z’s retirement aspirations and expectations. While this generation (ages 18 28) ideally wants to retire at 59, they realistically anticipate working until 67.

The trend isn’t unique to Gen Z. Millennials (ages 29 43) hope to retire at 61, but expect to keep working until 69. Across generations, the ideal retirement age is consistently younger than the expected age, reflecting economic pressures and shifting workforce dynamics.

Despite the less optimistic outlook, analysts suggest both Gen Z and Millennials may be better prepared for retirement than they realize, thanks to earlier awareness of financial planning and evolving retirement strategies.

The Social Security Administration (SSA) distributes benefits to nearly 74 million Americans each month, with payment timing based on beneficiaries’ birth dates.

• Pre-May 1997 recipients (retirement, spousal, or survivor benefits) receive payments on the 3rd of every month.
• Supplemental Security Income (SSI), which supports people with disabilities and older adults with limited income, is paid separately at the start of each month.
• When the first of the month falls on a weekend or holiday, SSI payments are issued the preceding business day. For January 2026, due to New Year’s Day, SSI recipients will receive their checks on December 31, 2025.

Markets closed mixed as equities slipped for a second straight session, but precious metals rebounded sharply, with gold and silver recovering from Monday’s selloff. Energy stocks provided the strongest lift within the S&P 500, while tech shares remained under pressure. Corporate headlines drove individual gains Intel surged on Nvidia’s $5B investment, Boeing rallied on its $8.58B Pentagon contract, and Meta expanded its AI footprint with a $2B+ acquisition of Manus. Meanwhile, Tesla faces delivery declines, and analysts warn of cooling demand.

For investors, the takeaway is clear: defensive assets like gold remain resilient, energy continues to show strength, and selective corporate catalysts are driving stock-specific moves even as broader indexes tread water.