U.S. stocks closed lower across all three major indexes on Thursday. By the close, the Dow fell 68.95 points, or 0.22%, to 30,991.52; the Nasdaq fell 16.31 points, or 0.12%, to 13,112.64; and the S&P 500 fell 14.30 points, or 0.38%, to 3,795.54.
Biden unveiled a $1.9 trillion stimulus plan after the market close, including direct payments of $1,400 to most Americans, which combined with the $600 payments in December would bring total relief to $2,000 per person; raising the federal weekly unemployment benefit to $400 and extending it through September; raising the federal minimum wage to $15 per hour; $350 billion in state and local government aid; $170 billion for K-12 schools and higher education institutions; $50 billion for COVID-19 testing; and $20 billion for the national vaccine program.
The U.S. House of Representatives passed the second impeachment of Trump. Eddie Ghabour, partner at financial advisory firm Key Advisors Group, said the market cares about fundamentals, profits and consumer demand, and the Trump impeachment is only a headline risk; people once worried about the U.S. presidential election, but it turned out to have no negative impact on the stock market.
The latest report from the U.S. Labor Department showed 965,000 people filed initial jobless claims in the past week. That figure was worse than expected and far above the previous week's 784,000. Analysts noted that the data had been hovering between 700,000 and 800,000 since September, and the latest reading highlights the persistent drag that the worsening pandemic is having on the U.S. labor market recovery.
In terms of sectors, a filing by private investment firm Ark Invest with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission showed the company plans to launch a new "Space Exploration ETF." Boosted by the news, U.S. space company Virgin Galactic closed up 19.9%, and U.S. space technology company Maxar Technologies closed up 19.6%. Ark Invest founder and CEO Cathie Wood is known as the "Queen of Bull Markets" after her big bets on Tesla paid off handsomely.
Among Chinese stocks listed in the U.S., 500.com rose 17.55%, ChinaNet Online Holdings rose 16.96%, and Futu Holdings rose 10.18%. On the losing side, The9 Limited fell 9.28%, Tuniu fell 9.01%, and WiMi Hologram Cloud fell 7.11%.
Gold and silver prices were mixed during the session. The most active February gold futures contract on the New York Mercantile Exchange fell $3.50 from the previous session to settle at $1,851.40 per ounce, down 0.19%. Silver futures for March delivery rose 23 cents to settle at $25.802 per ounce, up 0.9%.
Market analysts attributed the decline in gold prices mainly to higher U.S. Treasury yields.
Speaking at an online event at Princeton University on Thursday, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said an interest rate hike is "not soon" and pushed back against suggestions that the Fed might soon begin tapering its bond purchases. In response, Edward Moya, senior market analyst at trading advisory firm OANDA, said Powell basically affirmed the Fed's dovish stance and that the Fed would continue with ultra-loose policy, which is why gold remains bullish.
International oil prices closed higher, with U.S. crude rising more than 1%. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures for the near-month contract rose $0.66, or 1.25%, to settle at $53.57 per barrel. Brent crude futures for the near-month contract rose $0.36, or 0.64%, to settle at $56.42 per barrel.
However, some market analysts pointed out that factors such as the pace of COVID-19 vaccine distribution and poor responses in some countries have cast a shadow over the oil market outlook; in addition, oil producers' efforts to balance supply and demand face unprecedented challenges, all of which further limit oil price gains.
European stocks closed higher across the board. The Euro Stoxx 600 rose 2.93 points, or 0.72%, to 412.00; the UK's FTSE 100 rose 56.44 points, or 0.84%, to 6,801.96; France's CAC 40 rose 18.47 points, or 0.33%, to 5,681.14; and Germany's DAX rose 48.99 points, or 0.35%, to 13,988.70.
According to the European Central Bank's meeting minutes released on the day, at last month's policy meeting, governing council members were divided over how much additional monetary stimulus was needed, but unanimously agreed that action was necessary.