MARKET SNAPSHOT

U.S. stocks were mixed as gains in energy and consumer stocks drove the Dow Industrials higher, while weakness in technology shares weighed down the Nasdaq. Treasury yields and the dollar rose as layoffs in the U.S. remained at relatively low levels while the trade deficit unexpectedly shrank. Oil and gold also rose.

MARKET WRAPS

EQUITIES

Investors rotated out of technology stocks Thursday, with the Dow industrials rising and the Nasdaq composite dropping. The Russell 2000 index added 1%, giving the small-stock benchmark its first record since Dec. 11.

Stocks outside of the tech sector such as Home Depot, American Express and Caterpillar bolstered the Dow industrials, which rose about 0.5%. Declines in Nvidia and Broadcom shares weighed on the Nasdaq composite, which was down 0.4%, and the S&P 500, which was roughly flat on the day.

Defense stocks bounced back after President Trump called for a military budget of $1.5 trillion, or over half a trillion dollars more than the Pentagon is expected to get this fiscal year. Trump had earlier pressured the industry by ordering limits to shareholder payouts.

Earlier Thursday, in China, the Shanghai Composite fell 0.1%. The ChiNext Price Index ended 0.8% lower, while the Shenzhen Composite rose 0.2%.

The Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong also fell 1.2%.

Japan's Nikkei 225 dropped 1.6%.

In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 Benchmark Index gained 0.3%.

New Zealand's S&P/NZX 50 Index traded flat.

COMMODITIES

Oil futures gained as the market put aside prospects of increased Venezuelan crude supply and focused on a U.S. congressional bill that would allow for hefty sanctions against buyers of sanctioned Russian oil.

Sen. Lindsey Graham said President Trump "greenlit the bipartisan Russia sanctions bill." The bill "will allow President Trump to punish those countries who buy cheap Russian oil fueling Putin's war machine," Graham said in a post on X.

WTI settled up 3.2% at $57.76 a barrel and Brent rose 3.3% to $61.99.

"Oil prices are rebounding from their Venezuela oil sell-off only to get a bid because of President Trump's approval of bipartisan legislation," Phil Flynn of the Price Futures Group said.

Front-month gold edged 0.01% higher.

TODAY'S TOP HEADLINES

U.S. Trade Deficit Unexpectedly Falls to Lowest Level Since 2009

The U.S. trade deficit shrank dramatically in October to its lowest level since 2009, the Commerce Department said Thursday, an unexpected twist in a year of volatile trade flows that have been buffeted by the Trump administration's steep tariffs.

American imports fell to $331.4 billion in October, while exports increased to $302 billion. That yielded an October deficit of $29.4 billion, an imbalance nearly 40% smaller than September's.

Analysts polled by The Wall Street Journal had been expecting to see a $58.4 billion deficit-a large forecasting miss. Like much other recent economic data, the trade figures were delayed by last fall's government shutdown.

Unemployment Claims Stayed Modest Last Week

U.S. jobless claims edged slightly higher last week to start 2026, but remained near the low end of levels seen over the past year.

About 208,000 Americans filed new claims for unemployment benefits in the week through Jan. 3, versus 200,000 a week earlier, according to figures released by the Labor Department on Thursday morning. Economists polled by The Wall Street Journal were expecting to see 210,000 claims this past week.

Continuing claims, a gauge of the size of the total unemployed population, ticked higher to 1.91 million in the week through Dec. 27, from 1.86 million the week before. The continuing-claims data lag the initial-claims numbers by a week.

U.S. Push Into Venezuela Oil Patch Raises Questions About OPEC Dynamic

The prospect of increased U.S. influence over Venezuela's oil industry is raising questions about Washington's potential future role in OPEC, the cartel of global oil producers that President Trump has often called on to lower crude prices.

Venezuela is a founding member of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, which for decades has sought to guide global oil prices by metering production, often to the consternation of the U.S. and other big oil consumers. In recent years, OPEC has joined forces with Russia and other major producers in a grouping called OPEC+, which pumps about half of the world's oil.

Venezuela's acting president, Delcy Rodriguez, is also the country's oil minister and OPEC representative, a role that allows her to participate in the group's monthly meetings about production. In the wake of the U.S. ouster of former leader Nicolás Maduro, Trump said Rodriguez had agreed to ship Venezuela's oil to the U.S., where it will be sold to buyers. He also encouraged U.S. oil companies to spend billions of dollars to boost the country's output, which has suffered years of decline.

General Motors to Report $6 Billion Charge From Electric Vehicle Review

General Motors expects to incur a $6 billion charge in the fourth quarter from a review of its electric vehicle manufacturing capacity following the end of a $7,500 EV tax credit and slowing consumer demand.

The company previously recorded a $1.6 billion charge from the EV review in its fiscal third quarter.

GM also expects to record non-EV-related charges of about $1.1 billion in the fourth quarter, the vehicle maker said Thursday.

Glencore, Rio Tinto Restart Merger Talks

Glencore and Rio Tinto have restarted discussions about a possible merger that could create the world's largest mining company.

Glencore on Thursday confirmed a Financial Times article that it is in preliminary talks with Rio Tinto about a possible combination of some or all of their businesses. Rio Tinto not long after said talks are underway over a deal which could include an all-share merger between Rio Tinto and Glencore.

The expectation is that Rio Tinto, which has head offices in the U.K. and Australia, would acquire Glencore by way of a court-sanctioned scheme of arrangement, the companies said.

Paramount Defends Its Hostile Bid for Warner

Paramount Skydance continued pushing its $77.9 billion bid for Warner Bros. Discovery Thursday, a day after Warner said it plans to stick to its existing deal with Netflix.

"Paramount's offer is superior to WBD's existing agreement with Netflix and represents the best path forward for WBD shareholders," Paramount said.

Warner on Wednesday had told its shareholders in a public letter that Paramount's latest offer for the entire company wasn't superior, "or even comparable," to its $72 billion deal with Netflix.

Walmart Launches Digital Healthcare Platform, to Cut Prices on Some Health Items

Walmart launched Better Care Services, a digital network of healthcare providers, and will trim prices on some wellness-related products.

The platform offers same-day consultation with third-party providers for urgent care and behavioral health, the company said Thursday.

It also has access to LillyDirect, Eli Lilly & Co. digital platform for managing diabetes, obesity, and migraines.