Jobs data, Tesla’s rally, tariff revenue hits $200 billion and more in Morning Squawk

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Here are five key things investors need to know to start the trading day:

• Economists polled by Dow Jones are expecting this morning’s report to show that the U.S. added 45,000 jobs in November and that the unemployment rate ticked up to 4.5%.
• Fed Chair Jerome Powell warned in his news conference last week there has been a “systematic overcount” of jobs numbers recently, which could lead to large revisions.
• Meanwhile, the market is increasingly unsure of who will succeed Powell. Sources familiar with the matter told CNBC’s Steve Liesman that National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett’s candidacy has received pushback from people close to President Donald Trump.
• Traders are heading into this morning’s jobs report on their back foot. The three major indexes finished yesterday’s session in the red, once again dragged lower by artificial intelligence stocks as financing fears lingered.
• Jobs data is sharing the spotlight this week. The November consumer price index is due out on Thursday after also being held up by the government shutdown.
• Follow live markets updates here.

Ford’s shift away from all-electric vehicles is costing it $19.5 billion in special items, the automaker said yesterday. Shares rose nearly 2% in extended trading.

The charges, most of which Ford expects in the fourth quarter, are related to Ford’s new focus on hybrid vehicles and its decision to cancel a generation of all-electric trucks in favor of smaller and more affordable EVs. As CNBC’s Michael Wayland notes, the move comes as the broader EV industry grapples with a sales slump following the end of federal tax credits for EV buyers in September.

Ford CEO Jim Farley told CNBC’s “Closing Bell Overtime” yesterday that the carmaker is “following customers to where the market is.” For high-end EVs in particular, Farley said that they “just weren’t selling.”

Revenue from the new tariffs imposed by Trump this year has surpassed $200 billion, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency said yesterday.

Trump’s broad and steep duties have reshaped global trade this year, but their fate hangs in the balance as the Supreme Court weighs their legality. If the court rules against the White House, it could require refunds for companies that have already paid the tariffs.

Despite the milestone, tariff revenue recently pulled back. Collections fell to $30.75 billion in November from above $31 billion in the prior month — the first decline since Trump announced his sweeping new tariffs in April.

Consumers are still feeling doom and gloom about the economy. But as CNBC’s Gabrielle Fonrouge and Melissa Repko report, that isn’t stopping them from spending.

Even as a key consumer sentiment gauge sits near record lows, data shows that the highest number of Americans shopped in the five-day period from Thanksgiving to Cyber Monday in at least nine years. Retailers ranging from Costco to Best Buy have also said they’ve had positive starts to the all-important holiday shopping period.

There are still signs that the economic outlook is weighing on consumption habits. Namely, strength in value-oriented retailers like Walmart and T.J. Maxx signal shoppers’ increased attention to prices.

A decade ago, robotaxis were still being written off as the work of science fiction. Today, these driverless cars have become commonplace across America, from the Las Vegas Strip to school drop-off lines in Phoenix.

Alphabet-owned Waymo – the industry leader – is now operating, testing or planning to launch service in 26 markets around the world. Meanwhile, Amazon-owned Zoox and Tesla launched the first iterations of their services this year. Tesla shares surged to a new 2025 high yesterday after CEO Elon Musk confirmed that driverless robotaxi tests were happening in Austin.

There are still obstacles on the road to becoming more mainstream, whether it’s complaints around noise and congestion, consumer concerns about safety or higher prices than traditional rideshare platforms.

Baron Capital founder Ron Baron joined CNBC’s “ETF Edge” yesterday to discuss his firm’s new exchange-traded funds and SpaceX investment.

— CNBC’s Sean Conlon, Sarah Min, John Melloy, Steve Liesman, Michael Wayland, Lori Ann LaRocco, Gabrielle Fonrouge, Lora Kolodny, Jennifer Elias, Annie Palmer and Yun Li contributed to this report. Josephine Rozzelle edited this edition.