Stock Market Today: Investors Buy Stimulus Hopes, But Not With Both Hands
Investors seemed cautiously optimistic about Washington's tone on a COVID rescue package, though late news from Pfizer cut into Thursday's gains.
You are now subscribed
Your newsletter sign-up was successful
Want to add more newsletters?
Delivered daily
Kiplinger Today
Profit and prosper with the best of Kiplinger's advice on investing, taxes, retirement, personal finance and much more delivered daily. Smart money moves start here.
Sent five days a week
Kiplinger A Step Ahead
Get practical help to make better financial decisions in your everyday life, from spending to savings on top deals.
Delivered daily
Kiplinger Closing Bell
Get today's biggest financial and investing headlines delivered to your inbox every day the U.S. stock market is open.
Sent twice a week
Kiplinger Adviser Intel
Financial pros across the country share best practices and fresh tactics to preserve and grow your wealth.
Delivered weekly
Kiplinger Tax Tips
Trim your federal and state tax bills with practical tax-planning and tax-cutting strategies.
Sent twice a week
Kiplinger Retirement Tips
Your twice-a-week guide to planning and enjoying a financially secure and richly rewarding retirement
Sent bimonthly.
Kiplinger Adviser Angle
Insights for advisers, wealth managers and other financial professionals.
Sent twice a week
Kiplinger Investing Weekly
Your twice-a-week roundup of promising stocks, funds, companies and industries you should consider, ones you should avoid, and why.
Sent weekly for six weeks
Kiplinger Invest for Retirement
Your step-by-step six-part series on how to invest for retirement, from devising a successful strategy to exactly which investments to choose.
If Thursday's modest gains are any indication, investors are growing more optimistic about the chances of some sort of COVID stimulus package before the end of the year, but they're not counting their chickens, either.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said Thursday that there was "movement in the right direction" and that a bipartisan rescue package is "within reach"; that said, Democrats and Republicans are still at odds about several key aspects.
Also, the Labor Department reported an improvement on the unemployment front: Jobless claims for last week fell from 787,000 in the week prior to 712,000, easily undercutting Bloomberg forecasts of 775,000.
From just $107.88 $24.99 for Kiplinger Personal Finance
Become a smarter, better informed investor. Subscribe from just $107.88 $24.99, plus get up to 4 Special Issues
Sign up for Kiplinger’s Free Newsletters
Profit and prosper with the best of expert advice on investing, taxes, retirement, personal finance and more - straight to your e-mail.
Profit and prosper with the best of expert advice - straight to your e-mail.
But Pfizer (PFE, -1.7%) announced in the late afternoon that it expected to ship half as many COVID-19 vaccine doses in 2021 as originally planned. While that's still more than a billion doses, the news cut into the market's gains.
The Nasdaq Composite, up 0.2% to 12,377, still finished with enough juice to hit a new record high. The Dow Jones Industrial Average's attempt to reclaim 30,000 was rebuffed, however, though it still advanced by 0.3% to 29,969. The Dow was yet again led by Walgreens Boots Alliance (WBA, +7.5%) and Boeing (BA, +6.0%), the latter rising on a Ryanair purchase of 75 Boeing 737 Max aircraft.
Other action in the stock market today:
- The S&P 500 pulled back by less than a tenth of a percent – a 2-point decline to 3,666.
- The small-cap Russell 2000 improved by 0.5% to 1,847.
- Gold futures enjoyed a 0.6% improvement for the second straight day, settling at $1,841.10 per ounce.
A Head of Steam for Energy Heading Into 2021
Also advancing was crude oil, which continues to rally out of its April funk that saw prices go briefly negative.
Despite an announcement that the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies will increase production beginning in January, U.S. crude oil futures finished up 0.8% to $45.64 per barrel – still well below their 2020 starting point above $60 per barrel, but high above the $20-$30 range they were mired in this spring.
As 2021 approaches, the environment for energy stocks of all stripes is starting to look rosier – green energy stocks, for instance, could benefit from a new administration. Meanwhile, the closer a vaccine (and thus some semblance of normal economic activity) gets, the better traditional oil and natural gas stocks look.
Read on as we explore some of energy's best bets for 2021 – a group of nine stocks that sector analysts are overwhelmingly bullish on as we near the new year.
Kyle Woodley was long BA as of this writing.
-
Dow Leads in Mixed Session on Amgen Earnings: Stock Market TodayThe rest of Wall Street struggled as Advanced Micro Devices earnings caused a chip-stock sell-off.
-
How to Watch the 2026 Winter Olympics Without OverpayingHere’s how to stream the 2026 Winter Olympics live, including low-cost viewing options, Peacock access and ways to catch your favorite athletes and events from anywhere.
-
Here’s How to Stream the Super Bowl for LessWe'll show you the least expensive ways to stream football's biggest event.
-
If You'd Put $1,000 Into AMD Stock 20 Years Ago, Here's What You'd Have TodayAdvanced Micro Devices stock is soaring thanks to AI, but as a buy-and-hold bet, it's been a market laggard.
-
If You'd Put $1,000 Into UPS Stock 20 Years Ago, Here's What You'd Have TodayUnited Parcel Service stock has been a massive long-term laggard.
-
Stocks Struggle for Gains to Start 2026: Stock Market TodayIt's not quite the end of the world as we know it, but Warren Buffett is no longer the CEO of Berkshire Hathaway.
-
If You'd Put $1,000 Into Lowe's Stock 20 Years Ago, Here's What You'd Have TodayLowe's stock has delivered disappointing returns recently, but it's been a great holding for truly patient investors.
-
If You'd Put $1,000 Into 3M Stock 20 Years Ago, Here's What You'd Have TodayMMM stock has been a pit of despair for truly long-term shareholders.
-
Stocks Chop as the Unemployment Rate Jumps: Stock Market TodayNovember job growth was stronger than expected, but sharp losses in October and a rising unemployment rate are worrying market participants.
-
AI Stocks Lead Nasdaq's 398-Point Nosedive: Stock Market TodayThe major stock market indexes do not yet reflect the bullish tendencies of sector rotation and broadening participation.
-
Stocks Bounce Back With Tech-Led Gains: Stock Market TodayEarnings and guidance from tech stocks and an old-school industrial lifted all three main U.S. equity indexes back into positive territory.
