Morgan Stanley Scales Up

By Nicholas Jasinski |  Thursday, October 8 Hope Springs. The Dow Jones Industrial Average recovered from a midday dip into negative territory to close up today, at its highest level in more than a month. A number of incrementally positive factors helped lift the index. There was reason for optimism on the Covid-19 vaccine and treatment front, with President Donald Trump promoting Regeneron Pharmaceuticals' antibody cocktail and the company saying it would seek emergency use authorization. And betting odds of a Democratic election victory in November ticked higher after last night’s vice-presidential debate, increasing the odds of a multi-trillion dollar fiscal stimulus bill should one party control Washington. Initial jobless claims numbers released this morning remained high, but continuing claims fell from a week earlier and came in below economists’ consensus. Although at a slower pace than over the summer, the U.S. economy continues to recover. And technically minded traders noted that after a string of recent gains, the S&P 500 just crossed above its 50-day moving average. The Dow did lose its morning gains shortly before noon today, after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said that she wouldn’t support a narrower stimulus bill including targeted aid for airlines. That emphasized to investors that it remains all or nothing for a fiscal and coronavirus relief package, with party leaders still far apart on its size and scope. By the close, the Dow was back up 0.4%. The S&P 500 closed up 0.8% and the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.5%. All three have closed up on 8 of the past 11 trading days. And today's was a particularly broad rally: All 11 sectors in the S&P 500 rose.

 

DJIA: +0.43% to 28,425.51 S&P 500: +0.80% to 3,446.83 Nasdaq: +0.50% to 11,420.98 The Hot Stock: Occidental Petroleum +8.8% The Biggest Loser: Domino's Pizza -7% Best Sector: Energy +3.8% Worst Sector: Health Care +0.5%