- The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 0.07%.
- The S&P500 fell 0.15%.
- The Nasdaq Composite lost 0.47%.
US stocks fell on Thursday as COVID-19 restrictions in Europe and prospects for a swell in the US wave dominated the headlines.
At the same time, the chance of a stimulus deal is disappearing over the horizon while a sharp lift in initial jobless claims weighed on risk appetite.
Consequently, the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 0.07% to end at 28,494.2 points, while the S&P500 fell 0.15% to 3,483.34 while the Nasdaq Composite lost 0.47% to 11,713.87.
Ahead of the November 3rd election and lawmakers were still at loggerheads about a stimulus plan.
The US President Donald Trump said he was willing to raise his offer of $1.8 trillion for a COVID19 relief package in order to reach an agreement with Democrats but the idea was shot down by his fellow Republican, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.
The House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi said has also rejected the offer and stuck to her demand for a $2.2 trillion deal.
Meanwhile, the number of new people claiming unemployment benefits in the US had been trending down. However, today’s data was not so promising.
The number of initial claims has shot up
”The latest weekly data showed the number of initial claims has shot up to 898k, well above the expected level. Continuing claims fell to just over 10 million from 10.9 million,” analysts at ANZ Bank explained, adding, ”unsurprisingly, jobs appear to be falling away quickest in the states where COVID-19 cases are plentiful.”