The Dow dipped below 30,000 on Thursday, but managed to reclaim the milestone at the close of Friday. Still, the day was a relatively flat one on Wall Street as prospects for another aid package from Congress remained in limbo and a surge in virus cases threatened to inflict more damage on the economy, per the AP. The index rose 47 points to 30,046, while the S&P 500 fell 4 points to 3,663 and the Nasdaq fell 27 points to 12,377. Investors have been hoping for another financial lifeline to help cushion the latest blow from COVID-19 to people, businesses and state governments. However an emerging $900 billion aid package from a bipartisan group of lawmakers has stalled because of continued partisan bickering.
Stocks generally have been climbing over the last few weeks as advances in vaccine development raised hopes that the pandemic could be tamed in the coming months and set the global economy on a path to normalcy. “The excitement over the vaccine has already been priced in and the market is fairly overbought, based on where we are in the economy right now,” said Kenny Polcari, managing partner at Kace Capital Advisors. Polcari said markets are simply churning and consolidating following a strong November and he expects that to continue through December as stimulus talks continue. Wall Street also is waiting for a special election in Georgia in early January, which could potentially switch the balance of power in the Senate.
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