The President and CEO of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta discusses the future of the economy with Connell McShane of FOX Business.
US stock futures are trading higher in hopes of further economic stimulus after President-elect Joe Biden takes office.
Major future indices suggest a 0.3% gain when Friday’s Wall Street session begins.
DISCOVER FOX BUSINESS ON THE MOVE BY CLICKING HERE
With Democrats ready to take control of Washington, investors are predicting that the Biden government and Congress will try to deliver checks for $ 2,000 to most Americans, increase infrastructure spending and take other steps to feed the economy amidst worsening pandemic.
The first major economic event of the new year arrives on Friday morning, with the December employment report. The Department of Labor is expected to say that the United States economy added a meager 71,000 new non-farm jobs last month, the sixth consecutive month of declining earnings and below 245,000 in November, which was well below the 469,000 estimate.
It would also be the smallest gain since the beginning of the job recovery in May. The unemployment rate is expected to rise to 6.8% from 6.7% in November, the lowest since March.
OTHER 787,000 AMERICANS FILED UNEMPLOYMENT BENEFITS IN THE LAST WEEK
In Europe, London’s FTSE rose 0.1%, Germany’s DAX gained 0.7% and France’s CAC rose 0.3%.
In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 2.4% to close at 28,139.03, its best result in more than 30 years.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng jumped 1.2%, while China’s Shanghai Composite fell 0.2%.
On Thursday, the S&P 500 rose 1.5% to a record 3,803.79. Investors were reassured by Congress’ confirmation of Joe Biden’s presidential election victory and a change in Senate control over Democrats and largely changed from the previous day’s violence and chaos in the Capitol building.
| Ticker | Safety | Last | change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I: DJI | DOW JONES AVERAGE | 31041.13 | +211.73 | + 0.69% |
| SP500 | S&P 500 | 3803.79 | +55.65 | + 1.48% |
| I: COMP | NASDAQ COMPOSITE INDEX | 13067.479759 | +326.69 | + 2.56% |
President Trump issued a statement saying there will be an “orderly transition on January 20,” although he continues to falsely claim that he won. The Democratic victories in the two second rounds held on Tuesday for the United States Senate seats in Georgia led the Senate to a 50-50 split (with two independents competing with the Democrats), with possible ties being broken by vice president-elect Kamala Harris.
The recovery was broad, although the technology sector of the S&P 500 recorded the biggest gain, recovering losses after a retraction the previous day. The Dow gained 0.7% to 31,041.13. The high-tech Nasdaq rose 2.6% to 13,067.48.
Wall Street’s latest recovery adds to the previous day’s gains, when stocks soared with Democratic victories in the second round of the Senate. Investors are looking beyond the current political ugliness – and the acceleration of the coronavirus pandemic worldwide – and are focusing on the prospects for an improving economy.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE ABOUT FOX BUSINESS
In the energy trade, US reference oil added 34 cents to $ 51.17 a barrel in e-commerce on the New York Mercantile Exchange. He earned 20 cents on Thursday, to $ 50.83 a barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, rose 42 cents to $ 54.80 a barrel.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.