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U.S. stock futures rose after being traded in negative territory on Monday, before the first 2021 opening bell on Wall Street.
| Ticker | Safety | Last | change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I: DJI | AVERAGES DOW JONES | 30606.48 | +196.92 | + 0.65% |
| SP500 | S&P 500 | 3756.07 | +24.03 | + 0.64% |
| I: COMP | NASDAQ COMPOSITE INDEX | 12888.282427 | +18.28 | + 0.14% |
On Wall Street, the S&P 500 benchmark index rose 0.6% to 3,756.07 on Thursday, its last trading day of 2020. It ended the year up 16.3%, or a total return of around 18.4% with dividends.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.7% to a record 30,606.48. The Nasdaq compound added 0.1% to 12,888.28.
FUTURE SHARES TRADE BEFORE THE FINAL TRADING DAY OF THE YEAR
The development of vaccines by American, European and Chinese producers has helped to raise investor optimism that the return to normal may be closer after the worst decline in the global economy since the 1930s.
The United States and Britain have approved the vaccine from Pfizer Inc. and Britain has approved a second vaccine from AstraZeneca and the University of Oxford. China approved its first internally developed vaccine. Others are being tested.
U.S. stock futures soared after being traded in negative territory early Monday, before the first opening bell of 2021 on Wall Street. (Photo by TIMOTHY A. CLARY / AFP via Getty Images)
Governments may not launch as much stimulus to their economies as they did last year, but the policy “is still in a very loose scenario”, which supports stock prices and loans, said Kerry Craig of JP Morgan Asset Management, in a report.
“Investors should look to the most difficult beginning of the new economic cycle and focus on the best profit prospects,” said Craig.
Optimism about vaccines overcame concerns about the increasing number of infections in the United States and some other countries and the conflict over economic aid in Washington, said Stephen Innes of Axi in a report.
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Traders are “perhaps a little anxious” but believe vaccines “will provide the ultimate economic boost, offering a massive boost to corporate profits,” said Innes.
Meanwhile, Asian stock markets also showed gains on Monday, the first trading day of 2021, driven by optimism about coronavirus vaccines after Wall Street ended the year at a new high.
Shanghai, Hong Kong, Seoul and Sydney moved forward. Tokyo refused.
The Shanghai Composite Index gained 0.8% to 3,499.02 and Hang Seng in Hong Kong rose 0.5% to 27,366.10.
The Nikkei 225 in Tokyo fell 0.7% to 27,243.14 after Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said the government is considering declaring a state of emergency for the Japanese capital and three neighboring prefectures due to an increase in the number of virus cases.
Suga asked restaurants and bars to close at 8 pm and said it would be difficult to restart a travel promotion program that was suspended last month. He said the government will accelerate the approval of coronavirus vaccines and will begin providing injections in February.
The Kospi in Seoul rose 2.4% to 2,943.11 and the S & P-ASX 200 in Sydney added 1.5% to 6,684.20.
India’s Sensex opened less than 0.1% at 47,923.24. Singapore and Jakarta also advanced, while Bangkok declined.
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In the energy markets, US reference oil gained 56 cents to $ 49.08 a barrel in e-commerce on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract rose 12 cents on Thursday to $ 48.52. Brent crude, used to price international oils, added 67 cents to $ 52.47 a barrel in London. It rose 17 cents in the previous session to $ 51.80.
The dollar fell to 103.03 yen from Thursday’s 103.27. The euro rose from $ 1.2211 to $ 1.2254.