Stimulus talks lag, stocks dip
Unemployment numbers show virus still grips economy
U.S. stock indexes closed mostly lower Thursday following more evidence that the pandemic is tightening its grip on the economy while Congress remains in a stalemate over how to do something about it.
The S&P 500 slipped 0.1 percent after flipping between gains and losses in the early going. The index is within 1 percent of its all-time high set on Tuesday. Some 60 percent of the companies in the S&P 500 fell, led by declines in industrial and communication services stocks. Those losses outweighed gains in energy, technology and financial companies.
Treasury yields fell following a report that showed 853,000 U.S. workers applied for unemployment benefits last week. That was more than economists expected and an acceleration from the prior week. It’s also the latest reminder that the pandemic is doing more damage to the economy in the near term, even if prospects are rising that a COVID -19 vaccine will get the economy healthy in
the longer term.
Economists and investors have been imploring Congress to deliver more financial support in the meantime to help carry the economy until it can stand on its own. After months of partisan bickering and no progress on Capitol Hill, momentum seemed to gather recently for a deal, but the talks are still mired in deep uncertainty.
On Thursday, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin reported headway in talks over President Donald Trump’s latest $900 billion-plus plan. But Democrats and Republicans are still at odds over the size and scope of any deal.
“There’s nothing really new there, except now you’ve got
some softening economic data,” said Paul Christopher, head of global market strategy at Wells Fargo Investment Institute
The S&P 500 fell 4.72 points to 3,668.10. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 69.55 points, or 0.2 percent, to 29,999.26. The Nasdaq composite rose 66.85 points, or 0.5 percent, to 12,405.81.
Small company stocks continued to do better than the broader market. The Russell 2000 climbed 20.56, or 1.1 percent, to 1,922.70, a record high.
Shares of Airbnb soared 112.8 percent on their first day of trading. Interest has been high for the home sharing company, which has seen its business recover faster through the pandemic than hotels.