S&P 500 – 6,944.82 (+0.62%)

Dow Jones – 49,462.08 (+0.99%)

NASDAQ – 23,547.17 (+0.65%)

• U.S. Markets Overview: Traders brushed aside concerns over Venezuela on Tuesday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbing to fresh highs. Gains were supported by “Magnificent Seven” members Amazon and Nvidia, which helped lift all three major indexes.
• Venezuela Political Developments: Ousted Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, pleaded not guilty in Manhattan federal court to U.S. drug and weapons charges. They described their capture by U.S. forces as an illegal “kidnapping.”
• U.S. Military Operation: Over the weekend, U.S. forces carried out a high-profile operation that resulted in the capture of Maduro and Flores. The pair were transported to New York to face charges including narco-terrorism conspiracy and related offenses.
• Market Reaction to Venezuela Events: Financial markets reacted calmly to developments in Venezuela. U.S. equities closed higher, with the Dow outperforming both the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq.
• Bond Market Update: Treasury yields edged higher, with the 10-year U.S. yield opening near 4.17% and the 2-year yield rising to approximately 3.47%.
• Commodities Market: Oil prices and precious metals, including gold and silver, moved higher as investors continued to assess recent geopolitical developments involving the U.S. and Venezuela.
• Energy Stocks Performance: Shares of major U.S. energy companies advanced, with Chevron, Marathon, and Valero Energy posting gains of roughly 5% to 10% on Monday.
• Chevron and Venezuelan Oil Outlook: Chevron is seen as the global oil major best positioned to benefit from renewed U.S. access to Venezuelan oil, according to Bloomberg. A full recovery of Venezuela’s oil industry would likely take years and require more than $100 billion in investment.
• Labor Market Signals: Recent labor data sent mixed signals, with the unemployment rate rising to 4.6%, a four-year high. The increase was largely attributed to higher labor force participation.
• Nvidia Autonomous Vehicle Plans: Nvidia plans to begin testing a Level 4 robotaxi service as early as 2027, signaling a deeper push into autonomous vehicles beyond its core AI chip business.
• Amazon Legal Ruling: A U.S. judge ruled that Amazon must face a class-action lawsuit alleging it allowed excessive price increases on essential goods during the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Ford Sales Performance: Ford reported a 6% increase in U.S. vehicle sales in 2025, marking its strongest annual performance since before the pandemic despite declining EV sales.
• Meta Smart Glasses Rollout: Meta delayed the international rollout of its Ray-Ban Display AI glasses as limited supply and strong U.S. demand pushed waitlists into 2026.
• Tesla Delivery Results: Tesla reported fourth-quarter vehicle deliveries of 418,227, falling short of analysts’ expectations.
• Comcast and Versant Media: Comcast shares declined while its spinoff, Versant Media, also fell after the companies finalized their separation late Friday.
• Defense Stocks Movement: Defense stocks edged higher following the Venezuela developments, with Lockheed Martin rising just over 1% and Northrop Grumman gaining slightly less.
• NinjaOne Growth Milestone: Software startup NinjaOne reached $500 million in annual recurring revenue, posting nearly 70% year-over-year growth.
• Vistra Acquisition News: Vistra shares moved after the power-generation company announced plans to acquire Cogentrix Energy from Quantum Capital Group in a deal valued at about $4 billion, including cash, equity, and debt.
• Microchip Technology Outlook: Microchip Technology rose after the company raised its sales outlook for the recently completed quarter.
• Okta Share Buyback: Okta rallied after announcing a $1 billion share repurchase program.
• Homebuilder Stocks Pressure: Homebuilder stocks declined, with D.R. Horton and Lennar slipping following analyst downgrades. Wells Fargo cut D.R. Horton to equal weight, while UBS downgraded Lennar to neutral.
• Under Armour Stake Increase: Under Armour shares rose after Fairfax Financial Holdings disclosed it continues to build a sizable stake in the company.
• Cryptocurrency Markets: Bitcoin edged slightly lower early Tuesday but gained 4.8% on Monday as risk appetite improved. Bitcoin futures recorded their strongest close since mid-November.
• Precious Metals Update: Silver futures extended their rally.
• Federal Reserve Rate Expectations: Markets continue to price in a 16% chance of a January rate cut, according to the CME FedWatch Tool, unchanged from recent sessions.

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“Venezuela has the biggest oil reserves in the world… Venezuela was a U.S. oil colony. All of our oil was going up to the north, and the gas was being used by the U.S. and not by us.” — Hugo Chávez

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Notable Stocks

• Nvidia (NVDA)
• Amazon (AMZN)
• Tesla (TSLA)
• Meta Platforms (META)
• Micron Technology (MU)

Weekly Notables

Ford Posts Best U.S. Sales Since 2019 as 2025 Deliveries Rise 6%

Ford Motor reported a strong rebound in U.S. vehicle sales, posting its best annual performance since 2019. The automaker said Tuesday that sales rose 6% in 2025, reaching 2.2 million vehicles sold nationwide. Fourth-quarter sales increased 2.7% to more than 545,200 units, helping cap a year that aligned with broader industry growth. Ford last surpassed this annual total in 2019, when it sold 2.42 million vehicles in the U.S. The company finished 2025 as the nation’s third-largest automaker, trailing Toyota Motor and General Motors.

Maduro and Wife Appear in New York Court, Claim ‘Kidnapping’ as U.S. Drug Charges Move Forward

Ousted Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, made their first appearance in a Manhattan federal court Monday, pleading not guilty to charges of drug trafficking, narco-terrorism, and weapons violations. The couple was captured Saturday by U.S. forces in Venezuela on orders from President Donald Trump and transported to New York. Maduro’s attorney, Barry Pollack, who previously represented WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, argued that Maduro is the head of a sovereign state and questioned the legality of his military apprehension. Flores, represented by former federal prosecutor Mark Donnelly, also pleaded not guilty and requested medical attention for injuries sustained during the capture, including possible broken ribs and a forehead bruise. Both agreed to remain in custody without bail for now, with a potential future bail application.

Earnings Spotlight: Applied Digital Corp. (APLD)

Analysts expect revenue of $90.50 million up from $63.9 million reported in the same period last year, per Fiscal.ai estimates. Loss per share is seen coming in at $0.11 for the latest quarter, compared with a loss of $0.66 a year earlier. Most recently, Applied Digital was a lead investor in a $25 million funding round for Corintis, a Swiss-based chip-cooling solutions company for AI data centers.

What's Ahead

Attention now shifts to a heavy slate of U.S. economic data releases scheduled for the week ahead. Key reports include ADP private payrolls, ISM Services, JOLTS job openings, and factory orders on Wednesday; initial jobless claims and productivity and unit labor costs on Thursday; and the December nonfarm payrolls report on Friday.

Friday’s employment report is expected to show approximately 60,000 jobs added, consistent with recent sub-100,000 monthly gains, while the unemployment rate is projected to edge down to 4.5%. 

Next week’s earnings season kicks off with JPMorgan Chase reporting on Tuesday.

Economic:

• Wednesday (Jan. 7): ADP Employment Change, Business Inventories, EIA Crude Oil Inventories, Factory Orders, ISM Non-Manufacturing Index, JOLTs – Job Openings, MBA Mortgage Applications Index
• Thursday (Jan. 8): Consumer Credit, Continuing Claims, EIA Natural Gas Inventories, Initial Claims, Productivity – Preliminary, Trade Balance, Unit Labor Costs – Preliminary, Wholesale Inventories
• Friday (Jan. 9): Average Workweek, Building Permits, Hourly Earnings, Housing Starts, Nonfarm Payrolls, Unemployment Rate, University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment

Earnings:

• Wednesday (Jan. 7): Albertsons Companies Inc. (ACI), Applied Digital Corp. (APLD), Apogee Enterprises Inc. (APOG), AZZ Inc. (AZZ), Cal-Maine Foods Inc. (CALM), Constellation Brands Inc. (STZ), Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (JEF), MSC Industrial Direct Co. (MSM), PriceSmart Inc. (PSMT)
• Thursday (Jan. 8): Acuity Inc. (AYI), Aehr Test Systems (AEHR), Commercial Metals Co. (CMC), Greenbrier Companies Inc. (GBX), Lindsay Corp. (LNN), RPM International Inc. (RPM), TD Synnex Corp. (SNX)
• Friday (Jan. 9): Anixa Biosciences Inc. (ANIX)