(Bloomberg) — Stocks rose toward a record on speculation the economic recovery can weather the coronavirus flareup. Bonds fell.
Industrial and commodity companies led gains in the S&P 500. Volume was low ahead of the holidays. Electric-vehicle startup Nikola Corp. surged amid optimism about deliveries. U.S.-listed shares of JD.com Inc. sank on Tencent Holdings Ltd.’s plan to distribute more than $16 billion of the Chinese e-commerce firm’s stock as a one-time dividend. Crocs Inc., the colorful clog maker, plunged after agreeing to buy casual-shoe brand Heydude for $2.5 billion.
U.S. consumer sentiment increased in December as households grew more upbeat about the economy. Sales of new homes rose in November to a seven-month high, while orders for durable goods beat forecasts. Consumer spending — adjusted for inflation — stagnated as the fastest price gains in nearly four decades eroded purchasing power. Jobless claims were little changed last week.
Merck & Co.’s Covid-19 pill was cleared by U.S. regulators, giving high-risk patients another at-home treatment option. An Imperial College London team working with a larger data set found that people with the omicron variant were almost half as likely to need an overnight hospital stay.
“We’re still in a pretty good spot for equities,” said Anu Gaggar, global investment strategist at Commonwealth. “Real rates remain low and liquidity conditions remain quite easy, household and corporate balance-sheets are healthy and consumer confidence also remains high. It is not time to head for the exits.”
What to watch this week:
Friday: U.S. markets are closed. U.K. markets close earlier
Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
The S&P 500 rose 0.7% as of 11:30 a.m. New York time
The Nasdaq 100 rose 0.8%
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.5%
The Stoxx Europe 600 rose 1%
The MSCI World index rose 0.7%
Currencies
The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was little changed
The euro fell 0.2% to $1.1309
The British pound rose 0.4% to $1.3402
The Japanese yen fell 0.2% to 114.36 per dollar
Bonds
The yield on 10-year Treasuries advanced three basis points to 1.49%
Germany’s 10-year yield advanced four basis points to -0.25%
Britain’s 10-year yield advanced four basis points to 0.92%
Commodities
West Texas Intermediate crude rose 1.1% to $73.55 a barrel
Gold futures rose 0.3% to $1,808.40 an ounce
