Analysts: The Federal Reserve needs to provide clearer guidance on its future path.

U.S. stocks stalled their record rally in early trading Wednesday as Wall Street awaited a batch of economic data. The S&P 500 was virtually unchanged, just a day after hitting a record closing high. The tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 fell 0.2%, while the blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.3%, as some investors continued to pull out of the tech stocks that had been driving the market rally in recent months. Sameer Samana, global head of equities and real assets at Wells Fargo Investment Institute, said, “We’ve returned to recent highs where the market last stalled, and it seems like more information is needed before we can break through those levels. Also, the Fed needs to provide clearer guidance on its future path.” ADP research data released Wednesday showed that U.S. companies saw modest hiring activity in December as we head into 2026, with private sector employment increasing by 41,000, below economists’ expectations. Investors are awaiting Friday’s non-farm payroll data to gauge the resilience of the labor market. (Jinshi P)