New York City, U.S. – As 2024 draws to a close, stock futures showed a slight dip in overnight trading on Sunday evening. This comes ahead of the final trading sessions of the year, with futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average decreasing by 45 points, or 0.1%, and S&P 500 futures edging down 0.06%. Nasdaq-100 futures remained near the flatline.

Throughout the year, the major averages have been performing well, with the S&P 500 and Dow up more than 25% and 14%, respectively, making it their best year since 2021. The Nasdaq has seen an even more impressive increase, gaining over 31%. As the benchmarks head into the end of the year, they are also on track for a winning fourth quarter, with the Nasdaq poised for its longest quarterly winning streak since the second quarter of 2021.

Investors are keeping an eye on the market, hopeful that stocks will continue to rise in the coming days and into the new year. Many are anticipating a potential Santa Claus Rally, a market phenomenon where stocks tend to rise in the final five trading days of a calendar year and the first two in January. Despite previous momentum, there are some concerns about the market losing steam, particularly after a few losing sessions towards the end of the week.

“I think it’s long overdue,” said Tavis McCourt, institutional equity strategist at Raymond James, expressing his views on potential profit-taking as we enter January. With a significant amount of momentum in a select few names over the past month, McCourt suggests that more adjustments may be seen in the coming weeks. This week is expected to be relatively light in terms of economic data, with the Chicago PMI and pending homes sales data set to be released on Monday. The market will also be closed on Wednesday in observance of New Year’s Day.