5 things to know before the stock market opens Thursday

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

Supreme Court justices appeared skeptical of the legality of President Donald Trump’s tariffs on Wednesday, when the nation’s highest court heard oral arguments in a case that could determine the levies’ fate.

Here’s what to know:

• Both conservative and liberal justices pressed Solicitor General D. John Sauer over whether the International Emergency Economic Powers Act grants the president the power to impose tariffs.
• Critics say Trump’s move encroaches on the power of Congress to set and collect taxes.
• “You say tariffs are not taxes, but that’s exactly what they are,” liberal Justice Sonia Sotomayor told Sauer.
• Conservative Justice Neil Gorsuch also seemed wary of Trump’s unilaterally imposed duties, saying the move represents a “one way ratchet toward the gradual but continual accretion of power in the executive branch and away from the people’s elected representatives.”
• Stocks gained in Wednesday’s session as it appeared more and more likely that the court could rule against the White House and force it to roll back the broad tariffs. Here’s what that would mean for the market.
• Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told CNBC on Tuesday that the Trump administration has “lots of other authorities” it could cite to impose the duties, in the case the Supreme Court does not rule in its favor.
• Follow live market updates here.

Tesla’s shareholders will gather for their annual meeting this afternoon, and there’s a one trillion-dollar question on the table: Will they approve CEO Elon Musk’s nearly 13-figure pay package?

The EV maker is asking its investors to greenlight a plan that would grant Musk — already the richest person in the world — 12 tranches of shares over the next decade, if the company hits certain milestones. In total, the package is worth about $975 billion. The company is expected to release the results of the shareholder vote after the meeting.

While the proposal is expected to prevail, several groups have already said they will vote against the package or urged others to do so. Proxy advisors Glass Lewis and Institutional Shareholder Services have both pushed shareholders to reject the proposal. Norway’s sovereign wealth fund, a top Tesla shareholder with a 1.14% stake, said on Monday it will vote against the pay plan.

Amid concerns of air traffic control staffing shortages brought about by the government shutdown, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced yesterday that flight capacity at 40 major airports will be reduced by 10% starting Friday. He did not specify which airports would be subject to the decrease, which will affect roughly 3,500 to 4,000 flights per day.

Duffy, who called the move “proactive,” said he expects more cancellations thanks to the reduction. Even once the shutdown ends, which it looks unlikely to do anytime soon, the president of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association told CNBC on Wednesday that it could take weeks for the industry to recover.

Snap shares surged nearly 20% in overnight trading after the social media company beat revenue expectations for the third quarter and announced a $400 million deal with Perplexity AI. Starting early next year, the AI startup’s tech “will integrate its conversational search directly into Snapchat,” Snap said.

Meanwhile, fellow social media stock Pinterest had its second-worst day ever on Wednesday. Shares of the company sank more than 20% in the trading session after it released a disappointing earnings report and gave weak guidance for the current quarter on Tuesday.

Warner Bros. Discovery missed Wall Street’s top- and bottom-line expectations for the third quarter this morning, reporting an adjusted loss of 6 cents per share and $9.05 billion in revenue.

The results come as WBD decides whether to split into two, sell some of its assets or sell the entire company. CNBC reported on Wednesday that Paramount Skydance has sent letters to WBD’s board saying its $23.50 per share acquisition offer is in the best interest of its shareholders. Sources familiar with the matter told CNBC’s Alex Sherman that the media giant plans to announce its decision before Christmas.

Tariffs are making retailers across the U.S. raise prices, but one company is hiking more than others. Click here to read why prices on Amazon are climbing at a faster clip than other companies.

— CNBC’s Dan Mangan, Jeff Cox, Yun Li, Sean Conlon, Sarah Min, Chloe Taylor, Lora Kolodny, Laya Neelakandan, Jonathan Vanian, Jaures Yip, Alex Sherman and Courtney Reagan contributed to this report. Melodie Warner edited this edition.