Rafael Nam

For many households across the country, it's the time of family Christmas traditions.

And for Wall Street, there's nothing more traditional than the Santa Claus rally.

For reasons that have never been really clear, stocks have tended to do well in the last five trading days of the year, as well as the first two sessions of the new year.

And so far, it's been a promising start.

Stocks rose on Wednesday, with the S&P closing at a record high.

But a warning here.

It doesn't happen all the time.

Last year, instead of a rally, traders got coal when Santa left behind a market sell-off.

Rafael Nam, NPR News.

On Tuesday, the U.S.

is set to release an important report card detailing how much the economy grew in the July to September period.

It's backwards looking, so it's not going to provide the latest snapshot of the economy.

Nonetheless, the GDP report is coming at a time when Americans are not feeling great about the economy.

Recent polls have shown the cost of living and affordability are becoming a top concern at many households.

That's putting a lot of pressure on President Trump, who's aggressively defending his economic record.

And it means this GDP data could attract even more attention in the days leading up to Christmas.

Rafael Nam, NPR News.

One of the many consequences of the government shutdown was that the Labor Department was no longer able to compile important economic reports.

But with the shutdown now well over, the government is quickly catching up.

Early this week, the Labor Department is set to release the latest employment data for November.