Here are the top news, trends, and analysis investors need to get their trading day started:
1. Last day of trading in 2020 on Wall Street
Ornaments on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) Holiday Tree on Wall Street on December 9, 2020 in New York City.
Angela Weiss | AFP | Getty Images
2. Unemployment claims are below estimates
A help call sign is posted on a taco stand in Solana Beach, California.
Mike Blake | Reuters
The number of first-time applicants for unemployment benefits stood at 787,000 in the week ended December 26, the Labor Department said Thursday. Economists polled by Dow Jones expected 828,000.
Still, the number remained well above pre-pandemic levels. Those receiving benefits under all unemployment programs fell by nearly 800,000 to 19.6 million, compared with 1.8 million a year ago.
3. Europe stocks drop 3.8% annually
A European Union (EU) flies next to a flag of the British Union, also known in London as the Union Jack.
Jason Alden | Bloomberg Creative Photos | Getty Images
European markets, which closed early Thursday, posted slight losses for 2020. The pan-European Stoxx 600 index closed 0.14% on New Years Eve after a shorter trading session, bringing its losses for 2020 to 3.8%. The worst performing market in the region was the Spanish IBEX, which fell 15% this year.
4. California has identified its first case of a mutant strain of Covid in the UK
Gavin Newsom, California Governor, speaks during a press conference in Sacramento, California
Rich Pedroncelli | Bloomberg | Getty Images
California health officials have identified the state’s first case of a new and contagious strain of Covid-19 that was originally discovered in the UK. The patient is a 30-year-old San Diego County male who showed symptoms on Sunday, government officials confirmed Wednesday.
“I don’t think Californians should feel like this is anything strange. This is expected,” said White House coronavirus advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci, on Wednesday during a live Q&A session with California Governor Gavin Newsom. Fauci said other states are likely to identify their own cases of the new strain soon. The first confirmed case of the strain in the United States was found in Colorado, the state said Tuesday.
5. The US is imposing tariffs on French and German wines and aircraft parts
Qantas A380 will take off on the runway in Saxony, Dresden on August 21, 2020
Tino Plunert | Image Alliance | Getty Images
US trade officials said Wednesday they would impose tariffs on certain European Union products, including aircraft-related parts and wines from France and Germany.
The move came in a 16-year dispute between the US and the EU over subsidies for civil aviation, in which the European aircraft company Airbus and its US-based rival Boeing were involved.
In a statement, the US sales representative’s office said the EU had wrongly charged tariffs against the US, which the World Trade Organization ruled in September in the ongoing dispute allowed: “The EU must take action to redress this injustice.” “
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