US Stocks Rise as Weak Jobs Data Seen Boosting Biden Plan
Image Credits:nThe Economic Times
New York, Feb 5 (AFP/APP): Wall Street stocks added to records early Friday on expectations that a lackluster US jobs report bolstered the odds of passage of President Joe Biden’s economic relief package.
The Labor Department said the US economy added only 49,000 jobs in January and downgraded the number of new jobs created in November and December. Analysts said the disappointing figures boosted the prospects Congress will approve Biden’s $1.9 trillion stimulus package, which advanced on a party-line vote in the Senate early Friday but still faces several hurdles before being enacted. About 20 minutes into trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.5 percent at 31,210.24.
The broad-based S&P 500 advanced 0.4 percent to 3,888.95, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index climbed 0.3 percent to 13,817.68. Both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq closed at records Thursday, rallying on diminished market volatility and improving coronavirus trends in the US. Among individual companies, Johnson & Johnson rose 1.4 percent as it submitted an application for emergency authorization of its Covid-19 vaccine with US health authorities.
The process could take several weeks, but if approved, the vaccine would be the third authorized in the United States, after those of Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna.
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