U.S. stock markets commenced trading on Friday, December 19, 2025, with major indexes opening higher, signaling a positive end to what has been a volatile week. This uplift follows a robust performance on Thursday, driven by cooler-than-expected inflation data for November, which has reignited hopes for potential Federal Reserve rate cuts in the new year. Today's trading is also marked by "quadruple witching," an event that could introduce significant volatility as a record volume of options contracts expir ...