Global Stocks End Week Mixed

After a record-breaking Thursday on Wall Street, stocks show a mixed performance the day after. Due to multiple factors, such as Brexit talks and stimulus negotiations still remaining unfinished, global shares had a turbulent day. As for the records, they concern the Dow Jones Industrial Average, S&P 500, and Nasdaq Composite, all achieving fresh record closes on the day.

On Friday, however, the indexes remained near the position they were on the previous day. Dow futures, for example, showed a very slight movement of 0.05%, which translates to 15 points. S&P also jumped up, although slightly more significantly, with a 0.1% rise. Lastly, Nasdaq displayed a similar trend, with an indicated open of a 0.1% uptick.

Some positive news regarding a COVID-19 stimulus package are to thank for the positive trend. Namely, it seems like Congressional leaders are nearing an agreement regarding a $900 billion deal. However, there’s still a risk of those discussions dragging and only being resolved after the Christmas – New Year holiday period.

Another positive influence was the expedited approval process for Moderna’s vaccine. Following the FDA’s authorization of the Pfizer and BioNTech vaccine, it’s likely that they’ll follow the same path for Moderna. That’s likely to cause the company’s stocks to soar. However, there’s also some trade tension present, as the US blacklisted multiple China-based firms.

Undoubtedly affected by the tension with the US, Asian stocks reported negatively across the board. European stocks mimicked their neighbors across the sea, with relatively stagnant results. The Stoxx Europe 600 index, for example, dropped by only 0.1% in early Friday trading hours. The FTSE 100 index was the inverse of that, demonstrating a 0.1% rise. A trade deal regarding Brexit might be on the horizon but is on a tight deadline, meaning the situation is quite tense.