US stocks rose as global markets extended a rally fuelled by corporate deals while American lawmakers kept hopes of stimulus alive.
The S&P 500 gained for a second day after President Donald Trump left the door open to a piecemeal approach to aid. Eaton Vance leaped after the investment firm agreed to be taken over by Morgan Stanley. IBM surged after saying it will spin off its infrastructure unit. Regeneron rose after Trump said its antibody cocktail was the key to his quick recovery. The president said he would authorize its emergency use. The dollar held its decline as weekly jobless data roughly matched estimates.
At 19.20 hrs IST, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 69.36 points, or 0.25%, to 28,373.62 and the tech-laden Nasdaq was up 39.27 points at 11,402,60
Bulls are now back in control of a market that is increasingly betting that a Joe Biden presidential victory and gains by Democrats in Congress will be good for equities. The scenario seems to be quelling volatility even as risks from a split in government to a resurgence of coronavirus cases threaten the economic rebound.
The market is now almost treating Trump’s actions as a sideshow, and is much more firmly pricing Biden in the White House.