Micron and NVIDIA lift US equities ahead of Q3 GDP data 

Wall Street ends higher on Micron-led tech rally

United States (US) equity markets closed higher on Friday, led by a rebound in technology stocks after strong earnings from Micron Technology helped ease concerns around lofty valuations and high debt levels within the artificial intelligence (AI) complex. For the week, the Nasdaq 100 gained 0.59% and the S&P 500 edged 0.10% higher, while the Dow Jones  lost 323 points (-0.67%).

Building on Thursday’s 10.2% gain, Micron Technology finished 7% higher on Friday at $265.92, after the company delivered better-than-expected earnings alongside a strong outlook. Elsewhere, NVIDIA rose 3.93% to $180, extending its rebound from critical support at $170 as the US launched a review that could allow the sale of advanced AI chips to China.

Oracle jumped 6.35% to $191.92 after TikTok’s Chinese owner, ByteDance, signed a binding agreement to hand control of the app’s US operations to a group of investors, including the cloud computing giant. In contrast, Nike slumped 10.54% to $58.71 after revealing a sharp decline in China sales, a contraction in gross margins, and weaker-than-expected guidance for the third quarter (Q3).

The focus in a holiday-shortened week will be on the second estimate of Q3 US gross domestic product (GDP).

Q3 GDP second estimate

Date: Wednesday, 24 December at 12.30am AEDT

The US economy rebounded strongly in the second quarter (Q2) 2025, with real GDP growing at an annualised 3.8% according to the final (third) estimate from the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA).

This marked a sharp turnaround from the -0.6% contraction in the first quarter (Q1), driven primarily by surging consumer spending, robust business investment (particularly AI-related), and a significant drop in imports, which boosted net exports.

Due to the federal government shutdown, the BEA cancelled the advance estimate for Q3 and will combine it with the second estimate this week – effectively serving as the first official print.

Market expectations for this 'second' estimate centre on a modest moderation from Q2’s brisk pace. Consensus forecasts are around 3.2%, not far below the Atlanta Federal Reserve (Fed) GDPNow model, which is tracking at 3.5% as of 16 December. A print above 3.0% will confirm that the US economy was on solid footing before the government shutdown began on 1 October.

The US interest rates market starts the week pricing in roughly 16.5 basis points (bp) of cuts for the March Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting, with about 60 bp embedded between now and the end of 2026.

US real GDP chart

Nasdaq 100 technical analysis

We enter the home straight of 2025 shifting back to an upside bias, supported by bullish seasonals and the rebound seen late last week.

Looking ahead, we are watching for a convincing break above downtrend resistance from the 29 October high of 26,182, currently in the 25,750 region. This is being reinforced by the 10 December high of 25,835.

As such, a sustained break above the 25,750 - 25,850 resistance band would indicate the uptrend has resumed, targeting a move towards 27,000. Until then, allow the correction to play out.

Nasdaq 100 daily chart

S&P 500 technical analysis

In last week’s update, we noted the appearance of intermarket divergence between the Dow Jones and the Nasdaq 100, with the S&P 500 sitting in the middle, undecided whether to follow the Dow Jones higher or the Nasdaq lower.

We also said that given we have entered the seasonally strong year-end period, we were inclined to give the benefit of the doubt to further upside for the S&P 500, and this is how we start the new week.

Specifically, we are watching for a convincing break above downtrend resistance in the 6900 area, reinforced by the 29 October high of 6920.

As such, a sustained break above the 6900 - 6920 resistance band would indicate the uptrend has resumed, targeting a move towards 7000. Until then, allow the correction to play out.

S&P 500 daily chart

• _{Source: TradingView. The figures stated are as of 22 December 2025. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance. This report does not contain and is not to be taken as containing any financial product advice or financial product recommendation.}