Wall Street ends volatile week with gains, S&P at record

The exterior of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) is seen on November 4, 2020 in New York. – Wall Street stocks were in rally mode Wednesday, shrugging off uncertainty over the still-unresolved presidential election and the likelihood of divided government in Washington.The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 2.0 percent, or about 560 points, at 28,041.28 at around 1530 GMT, (Photo by Kena Betancur / AFP)

NEW YORK, United States  – After an unpredictable week, Wall Street finished Friday on a high note, shrugging off concerns over the surge in Covid-19 cases and new pandemic restrictions that threaten to slow the US economy.

The benchmark Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.4 percent to close at 29,479.81.

The broad-based S&P 500 also added 1.4 percent to 3,585.15, a new record, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index climbed 1.0 percent to 11,829.29.

“Festering concerns regarding the implications of the persistent surge in new Covid-19 cases also had a hand in the bumpiness this week,” Charles Schwab investment bank said, adding that “The earnings front continued to paint a positive picture.”

Dow-member Walt Disney gained 1.7 percent after reporting its recently launched streaming television service Disney+ had hit 73 million subscribers, despite the company losing $710 million in the latest quarter.

And fellow Dow member Cisco Systems jumped seven percent after topping earnings forecasts.

Stocks that would benefit from a resumption of normal trade and travel patterns once a coronavirus vaccine becomes widespread also resumed their upward climb.

Cruise line Carnival Corp surged 7.2 percent, and Southwest Airlines jumped 4.7 percent.

But video conferencing platform Zoom, which has become popular during the pandemic, fell 5.8 percent.

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