November was not kind – or typical – for US stocks

The U.S. stock market was closed Thursday in the United States for Thanksgiving and will reopen Friday until 1 p.m. ET.

With only about 3 hours of trading remaining for the month, major U.S. indexes are expected to end November in the red, according to CNBC calculations.

As of Wednesday’s close, the S&P500 was down 0.4% since the start of the month, the Dow Jones Industrial Average 0.29% less during the same period and the Nasdaq Composite down 2.15%, significantly underperforming its siblings as tech stocks stumbled in November.

Unless there is a sharp rise in stocks during Friday’s shortened U.S. trading session – which may not be an unequivocally positive move as it would raise more questions about the sustainability of the market – that means the indexes are on track to end their winning streaks. The S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average are up over the past six months, and the Nasdaq Composite is up seven.

This will also mark a departure from the historical norm. The S&P 500 has gained an average of 1.8% in November since 1950, according to the Stock Trader’s Almanac. And the year following a US presidential election, it typically increases by 1.6%.

But this isn’t a typical post-presidential election year. It is difficult to imagine that the market, in the months or even years to come, will evolve along a historic trajectory.

U.S. futures were mostly flat Thursday evening. The stock market was closed on Thanksgiving, while U.S. Asia-Pacific markets traded mixed on Friday. from Japan Nikkei 225 rose in volatile trading after inflation in Tokyo became higher than expected.

Trump will suspend immigration from “third world countries”. The US president will also cancel federal benefits and subsidies for “non-citizens” in the country, he said Thursday evening in articles published by Truth Social. Trump did not specify which countries would be affected.

South Korea imposes sanctions on Prince Group. The Cambodian conglomerate is accused of running large-scale fraudulent operations across Southeast Asia. The US, UK and Singapore have also imposed punitive measures against the company.

Russia ready for “serious” talks for peace. The U.S.-led framework “can serve as a basis for future agreements,” Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday, as translated by Reuters. He added that the United States appeared to be “taking into account” Moscow’s position.

[PRO] Bank of America doesn’t see much upside potential for 2026. The S&P 500 is expected to rise a single-digit percentage point, a slowdown from recent years as one of the supporting factors will be declines, a bank strategist said.

Europe’s slow and steady approach to AI could be its advantage

Europe is unlikely to lead in building facilities for AI hyperscalers or training AI – that race is considered almost won – but the general consensus is that it could excel at smaller, cloud-focused, connectivity-style facilities.

Europe has “a lot of constraints, but, realistically, the harder something is to replicate, the more valuable what you have is in the long term,” said Seb Dooley, senior fund manager at Principal Asset Management.

-Tasmin Lockwood