Market Recap
US Markets:
There is still no clear winner of the election yet, however, the markets continued to overlook this and gained for the fourth day in a row. Investors seem to believe that the end is near and are very encouraged.
The Dow Jones closed 542.52 points higher, or 1.95%, at 28,390.18. At its highs for the day, the Dow rose by over 600 points. The S&P 500 also climbed 1.95% and the Nasdaq led the indices gaining 2.6%. Thursday’s session also marked the first time since 1982 that both the Dow and S&P rose by at least 1% in four straight sessions.
The indices are on pace for their biggest weekly gains since April. At Thursday’s close, the Dow was up 7.1% for the week, the S&P 500 was up 7.4% for the week, and the Nasdaq was up 9% for the week.
Cryptocurrency:
Cryptocurrencies mimicked the markets and surged today. For the second day in a row, Bitcoin shattered their 3-year high and broke $15,000 for the first time since January 2018. Bitcoin is now up 30% in the last 30 days. There is certainly long-term momentum with traders now eyeing Bitcoin’s all time high of just under $20,000.
Overall Market:
All three major indices closed sharply higher for the fourth consecutive day.
Markets across the world also rose. European markets are on pace for their best week since 2011, Canada’s TSX rose for the fourth consecutive day, Brazil’s Ipovespa jumped by 3%, and Mexico’s market gained over 2%. Although investors around the world continue to anxiously monitor the US presidential election, there is a belief that we may be near the end. Biden is still leading with 264 electoral votes to Trump’s 214 votes and is seemingly in arms reach of the presidency. If this election becomes further contested though, there could be a very sharp downturn. The results however show a split Congress, which, based on history, has been the market’s preference.
WHATS UP
Although the election is garnering the majority of the attention, investors also noted the Fed’s latest announcement today holding rates at or near 0%. While this announcement was not totally unexpected, it was still largely cheered. The October jobs report will also be released tomorrow, and this could move markets.
Big Tech companies led the gains once again today. Facebook and Amazon both gained more than 2%, while Netflix, Apple and Microsoft each closed more than 3% higher. Facebook has gained 12% this week, Amazon and Apple have gained 9.4% and 9.3%, respectively, and Microsoft gained 10.3%.
Tech’s rally is another example of why investors prefer a divided Congress. A divided government is good news for growth stock investors hoping that taxes don’t go up, antitrust scrutiny stays in check, and the China trade war doesn’t get any worse.
Sources: CNBC.com, Yahoo! Finance, TradingEconomics, Wall Street Journal
