Exterior view of Macy's herald square store in New York City, on November 28, 2025. Kena Betancur | Afp | Getty Images
This is CNBC's Morning Squawk newsletter. Subscribe here to receive future editions in your inbox. Here are five key things investors need to know to start the trading day:
1. Shopping around
Macy's beat Wall Street's top- and bottom-line expectations for the third quarter this morning, posting its strongest growth in more than three years. The department store operator's results are only one of several recent data points investors have received on the state of the U.S. consumer. Here's what to know: Despite the strong results, shares of Macy's dropped more than 6% before the bell. The retailer displayed caution about the current quarter, citing consumer spending concerns and pressure from tariffs.
Meanwhile, American Eagle Outfitters better-than-expected earnings and provided upbeat guidance for fourth-quarter comparable sales.
better-than-expected earnings and provided upbeat guidance for fourth-quarter comparable sales. American Eagle said its ad campaigns with actress Sydney Sweeney and NFL star Travis Kelce are "attracting more customers," though they've not yet been a major revenue driver.
Sweeney is just one of several celebrities who has starred in a denim ad for a clothing brand. As CNBC's Gabrielle Fonrouge and Natalie Rice report, companies are pulling out all the stops in hopes of winning the so-called "denim war."
Plus, the numbers are in: More than 202 million Americans shopped in the five-day period from Thanksgiving through Cyber Monday, the highest number on record since the National Retail Federation began tracking in 2017.
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2. Hiring or firing?
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