LIVE MARKETS-Holiday air travel maintains altitude

Main US indexes green; S&P 500 up ~0.7% Materials lead S&P 500 sector gainers; Staples sole loser Dollar down; bitcoin up >1%; crude, gold both up >2% US 10-year Treasury yield edges up to ~4.17% Welcome to the home for real-time coverage of markets brought to you by Reuters reporters. You can share your thoughts with us at HOLIDAY AIR TRAVEL MAINTAINS ALTITUDE As Americans find their holiday cheer challenged by long security lines and the inevitable flight delays, now is as good a time as any to check in on the state of U.S. air travel. With the holidays approaching, data from the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) shows travel volume is virtually unchanged from last year. On average, during the seven days through December 21, 2.53 million travelers per day emptied their pockets and shuffled through airport security checkpoints. That’s a virtual repeat of the same seven-day average last year. What’s more, it’s a healthy 4.9% stronger than the daily average of that same period in 2019, immediately preceding the COVID crisis. Shares of commercial air carriers (.SPCOMAIR) are currently up 12.6% in 2025. While that’s a strong gain, it still underperformed all three major U.S. stock indexes. The Labor Department’s most recent CPI report shows airline fares have decreased 5.4% year-over-year, likely dragged lower by the year-to-date 21% drop in front-month crude futures (CLc1) . Holiday travel data is often linked to consumer confidence as well, with revelers tending to stay closer to home in times of economic uncertainty. (Stephen Culp) EARLIER ON LIVE MARKETS: LEND AN EAR, BULLS HOPE YOU’LL HEAR…SANTA COMING HERE! CLICK HERE BUOYANT STOCK OPTIMISM SPARKS BOFA SELL SIGNAL WALL STREET GREEN AS CHRISTMAS WEEK COMMENCES CLICK HERE BANKS EYE HISTORIC HAT-TRICK AS BOFA PREDICTS 2026 RALLY CLICK HERE RBC SPREADS HOLIDAY CHEER: OVERWEIGHT TREATS FOR HEALTH CARE & COMM SERVICE CLICK HERE GROWTH ON TRACK TO OUTPERFORM VALUE FOR A THIRD STRAIGHT YEAR CLICK HERE FTSE MIB SEEN UP IN 2026, BUT BANKS HIT VALUATION CEILING CLICK HERE THE UNWINDS TO WORRY ABOUT NEXT YEAR CLICK HERE EXCITEMENT FREE OPEN CLICK HERE TSA throughput and airline shares