Gold prices steady ahead of Fed decision, Trump’s tariff deadline
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* Walt Disney surges on new streaming lineup
* Qualcomm among biggest drags on S&P 500
* U.S. FDA poised to OK Pfizer vaccine
(Updates to market close)
By Chuck Mikolajczak
NEW YORK, Dec 11 (Reuters) - The S&P 500 and Nasdaq closed
with modest declines on Friday, as uncertainty over fresh
economic stimulus dented confidence, although strong gains from
Walt Disney helped the Dow Industrials eke out a gain.
The U.S. Senate, facing a midnight deadline on Friday,
unanimously approved a one-week extension of federal funding to
avoid a government shutdown and to provide more time for
separate negotiations on COVID-19 relief and an overarching
spending bill. Lawmakers have wrangled for months over a fresh fiscal
stimulus package to support an economy battered by coronavirus
lockdowns. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo on Friday suspended
indoor dining in New York City, effective Monday. "It's like holiday shopping, you think you've got time and
the next thing you know it's the day before the holiday and
you've got to hammer it out and get it done," said Tom Hainlin,
global investment strategist at U.S. Bank Wealth Management's
Ascent Private Wealth Group in Minneapolis.
"The base case is that they are going to get it done, the
base case is we are going to get some stimulus package put
through and because we have some of the forbearance things
falling off at the end of the year, there is a shot clock on
these."
While recent data has showed a faltering recovery in the
labor market, a survey from the University of Michigan on Friday
showed consumer sentiment improved more than expected in
November, while a gauge of inflation rose moderately.
Unofficially, the Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI rose
35.4 points, or 0.12%, to 30,034.66, the S&P 500 .SPX lost
6.31 points, or 0.17%, to 3,661.79 and the Nasdaq Composite
.IXIC dropped 34.06 points, or 0.27%, to 12,371.75.
Walt Disney Co DIS.N shares were the biggest boost to the
Dow and S&P 500 as the media company announced a heavy slate of
new shows for its streaming services and said it expects as many
as 350 million global subscribers by the end of fiscal 2024.
With daily coronavirus death tolls at alarming levels, fresh
business restrictions in many U.S. states and increasing
layoffs, investors are counting on more fiscal relief to sustain
a nascent economic recovery as most government aid has dried up.
Another 2,902 U.S. deaths were reported on Thursday, a day
after a record 3,253 people died, a pace projected to continue
for the next two to three months even with a rapid rollout of
inoculations.
However, conflicting headlines on progress toward a stimulus
deal have kept investors cautious, even as optimism over a
working vaccine pushed Wall Street's main indexes to record
highs this week. The Dow and S&P each snapped two-week winning
streaks while the Nasdaq broke a three-week streak of gains.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Thursday raised the
possibility of stimulus negotiations dragging on through
Christmas. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is expected to issue
an emergency use authorization for Pfizer Inc's PFE.N COVID-19
vaccine expected as soon as Friday evening, the New York Times
reported. The U.S. drugmaker's shares, however, gave up early gains
and closed lower.
Qualcomm Inc QCOM.O slumped and was among the top
decliners on the benchmark S&P 500, following a Bloomberg News
report that Apple Inc AAPL.O has started building its own
cellular modem for future devices, a move that would replace
components from the chipmaker.