For a while there, traders and investors lost faith in Santa Claus rallies. First, the scoreboard: Dow: 17,937.4, +132.6, (+0.7%) S&P 500: 2,078.0, +7.3, (+0.3%) Nasdaq: 4,780.1, +14.6, (+0.3%) And now, the top stories on Friday: 1. US futures were already pointing to a higher open. Stocks remained in the green for most of the day.