Sector Update: Financial Stocks Decline Late Afternoon

03:59 PM EST, 12/09/2025 (MT Newswires) -- Financial stocks were decreasing in late Tuesday afternoon trading, with the NYSE Financial Index easing 0.1% and the State Street Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLF) down 0.3%.

The Philadelphia Housing Index was falling 1.5%, and the State Street Real Estate Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLRE) was down 0.4%.

Bitcoin (BTC-USD) was increasing 2.6% to $93,019, and the yield for 10-year US Treasuries rose 1 basis point to nearly 4.19%.

In economic news, US job openings rose to 7.670 million in October, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, above the 7.117 million expected in a survey compiled by Bloomberg and up from the 7.658 million reported in September. The October level represents 4.6% of total employment, unchanged from September and from a year earlier. However, hiring fell to 5.149 million from 5.367 million in September, lowering the hiring rate to 3.2% from 3.4%, according to the BLS.

US small business optimism ticked higher by 0.8 points sequentially to 99 in November, the National Federation of Independent Business said Tuesday. The consensus was for a 98.3 reading in a survey compiled by Bloomberg.

In corporate news, Starboard Value acquired a roughly 5% stake in Clearwater Analytics (CWAN) and urged the company to work toward driving shareholder value, Reuters reported. Clearwater shares were down 3%.

Wells Fargo (WFC) Chief Executive Charlie Scharf said Tuesday he expects the company's headcount to decline partly due to the use of AI technology, according to a FactSet transcript of his remarks at a Goldman Sachs financial services event. Wells Fargo (WFC) shares were down 1.2%.

JPMorgan Chase's (JPM) investment management division JPMorgan Asset Management is looking to convert two municipal-bond mutual funds with over $840 million of assets into exchange-traded funds in 2026, Bloomberg reported. JPMorgan (JPM) shares were falling 4.6%.

Blackstone (BX) Chief Executive Stephen Schwarzman downplayed market concerns that private credit was to blame for recent bankruptcies in the auto sector, Reuters reported. The bankruptcies in October were bank-led transactions and "private credit was sort of not in the room," the report quoted Schwarzman as saying in a video presentation during Abu Dhabi Finance Week. Blackstone shares were rising 3%.

MT Newswires does not provide investment advice. Unauthorized reproduction is strictly prohibited.