US STOCKS-Wall St ends higher in renewed rally on hopes of further stimulus

* Biden says economic package to be trillions of dollars
* Senator Manchin dashes expectations a bit
* Nonfarm payrolls fall in December
* Tesla market cap tops $800 bln for the first time

(Adds market close at 4 p.m.)
By Herbert Lash
Jan 8 (Reuters) - The S&P 500 and Nasdaq scaled new highs on
Friday as hopes of more stimulus from Washington were shaken by
a senator's comments but later bolstered after U.S.
President-elect Joe Biden said his economic package will be in
the trillions of dollars.
The latest rally in equities overcame labor market data
early in the day that showed the U.S. economy shed jobs for the
first time in eight months in December. But late in the session, the S&P retreated slightly from a
its most recent peak following a report that Democratic U.S.
Senator Joe Manchin opposed bigger direct checks before
addressing the coronavirus pandemic. The remarks threw cold
water on investor hopes for further stimulus payments.
"It's amazing how sensitive we are to the slightest tweaking
of when and how big the stimulus will be," said Ed Moya, senior
market analyst at OANDA in New York.
"Stocks are going to start to price in a bigger economic
relief package from the Biden administration," Moya said. "That
is going to continue to be the driver on equities."
Biden said his administration's economic package will also
include unemployment insurance and rent forbearance.
The package will be unveiled next Thursday, he said.
"It is necessary to spend the money now," Biden told
reporters. "The answer is yes, it will be in the trillions of
dollars, an entire package."
Positive COVID-19 vaccine data and expectations of a bigger
fiscal package and infrastructure spending under a
Democratic-led U.S. Congress have pushed the S&P 500 above 3,800
points for the first time, and set all three major indexes on
track for weekly gains.
Seven of the 11 major S&P sectors dropped, with
economy-linked financials .SPSY , materials .SPLRCM and
industrials .SPLRCI , which have outperformed their peers and
scaled record levels this week, dropping more than 1%.
Market participants looked past a report that congressional
Democrats plan to introduce articles of impeachment against
President Donald Trump on Monday, after a violent crowd of Trump
supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday. Unofficially, the Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI rose
56.84 points, or 0.18%, to 31,097.97, the S&P 500 .SPX gained
20.89 points, or 0.55%, to 3,824.68 and the Nasdaq Composite
.IXIC added 134.50 points, or 1.03%, to 13,201.98.
The S&P 500 closed above 3,800 points for the first time on
Thursday, while the Dow and the Nasdaq posted their fourth
straight weekly gains.
Electric car-maker Tesla Inc TSLA.O jumped, taking its
market capitalization to more than $800 billion for the first
time ever. U.S.-listed shares of Baidu BIDU.O gained on plans to form
a company to make smart electric vehicles, according to two
sources familiar with the matter.