The so-called Santa Claus rally could get off to a late start this year. But better late than never. A team of strategists at Ned Davis Research pointed out that stocks have struggled ahead of the start of the “Santa Claus rally” period, which begins on Tuesday.

Traders are also weighing the outlook for interest rate cuts in 2025 in light of recent inflation data. Personal consumption expenditures inflation, the Fed's preferred inflation measure, rose 2.4% year-per-year in November, slightly under expectations.

Check back for updates throughout the trading day U.S. equity futures edged higher in early Monday trading as investors looked to the holiday-shortened week and the traditional 'Santa Claus rally' to pull stocks out of their sharp December downturn.

By Lewis Krauskopf NEW YORK (Reuters) -With December so far delivering Scrooge-like returns in an otherwise stellar year for U.S. stocks, investors hope the tail end of 2024 offers some holiday cheer,