GLJ Research founder and CEO Gordon Johnson and FOX Business Charlie Gasparino provide insight into short selling.
US stock markets peaked on Friday morning after the Senate paved the way for President Biden’s $ 1.9 billion COVID-19 aid package and the job report showed a drop in the unemployment rate.
| Ticker | Safety | Last | Alter | Alter% |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ek: DJI | DOW JONES AVERAGE | 31156.41 | + 100.55 | + 0.32% |
| SP500 | S&P 500 | 3882.69 | +10.95 | + 0.28% |
| I: COMP | NASDAQ COMPOSITION INDEX | 13797.271282 | +19.53 | + 0.14% |
The Dow Jones industrial average rose 170 points, or 0.55%, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite rose 0.48% and 0.29% respectively. Both the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite traded in a record area, while the Dow was just below its own peak.
Also, support for stocks, a boost in West Texas Intermediate oil prices that were above $ 57 a barrel on Friday.
| Ticker | Safety | Last | Alter | Alter% |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| USO | UNITED STATES OIL FUND LP | 38.12 | +0.32 | + 0.83% |
| XLE | ENERGY SELECT SECTOR SPDR ETF | 42.68 | +0.48 | + 1.14% |
Shares rose despite a ho-hum job report, with the addition of 49,000 jobs in January as unemployment fell to 6.3%, according to the Department of Labor. Wall Street analysts surveyed by Refinitiv expected the addition of 50,000 jobs with the unemployment rate to remain constant at 6.7%.
In Washington, the upper house of Congress voted 51-50 early Friday morning, with Vice President Kamala Harris casting the deciding vote to pass a budget resolution for coronavirus relief. The vote paves the way for a bill that could be passed using budget reconciliation rules that would allow Democrats to avoid a Republican filibuster.
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In shares, GameStop Corp, AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc. and others received a postponement after Robinhood Markets Inc. all trade restrictions implemented have been lifted amid an increase in volatility. GameStop shares fell 84% this week to Thursday while AMC shares fell 47%.
| Ticker | Safety | Last | Alter | Alter% |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GME | GAMESTOP CORP | 79.07 | +25.71 | + 48.18% |
| AMC | AMC ENTERTAINMENT HOLDINGS INC | 7.65 | +0.56 | + 7.90% |
| BBBY | BED BATH & BEYOND INC. | 27.35 | +0.34 | + 1.26% |
| BB | BLACKBERRY LIMITED | 12.69 | +0.52 | + 4.27% |
Elsewhere, Chevron Corp. made an offer to buy the remaining shares of Noble Midstream LP, which it does not yet own for $ 12.47 apiece, the same as Thursday’s closing level. The agreement, which must be approved by Noble’s board of directors, amounts to $ 1.13 billion for the company.
| Ticker | Safety | Last | Alter | Alter% |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVX | CHEVRON CORP. | 89.73 | +0.67 | + 0.75% |
| XOM | EXXON MOBIL CORPORATION | 49.59 | +1.27 | + 2.63% |
In terms of earnings, Ford Motor Co. lost $ 2.8 billion in the three months to December as the production of its F-150 pickup was recalled by the air cushion. The Detroit-based automaker has said by 2025 that it will spend $ 22 billion on electric vehicles and another $ 7 billion on developing autonomous vehicles.
| Ticker | Safety | Last | Alter | Alter% |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| F | FORD MOTOR COMPANY | 11.42 | +0.04 | + 0.36% |
Peloton Interactive Inc. reported a record quarterly revenue and increased its outlook for the year, but warned that recent upgrades to its supply chain would have a short-term impact on margins.
| Ticker | Safety | Last | Alter | Alter% |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PTON | PELOTON INTERACTIVE | 145.56 | -11.97 | -7.60% |
Snap Inc. said its number of daily active users had increased by 22% from a year ago, but warned that the riots in Capitol Hill and Apple’s privacy changes to its operating system would outweigh the results in the current quarter.
| Ticker | Safety | Last | Alter | Alter% |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SNAP | SNAP INC. | 57.47 | -0.86 | -1.48% |
In commodities, gold added $ 4.50 to $ 1,795.70 per ounce.
BITCOIN ROBS OF GOLD AS PRECIOUS METAL WASHES UNDER $ 1,800
Overseas markets were mostly higher.
The French CAC 40 caused the advance in Europe to move, by 0.98%, while the German DAX 30 achieved a modest increase of 0.2% and the British FTSE 100 changed little.
In Asia, the Japanese Nikkei 225 rose 1.54%, the Hong Kong Hang Seng Index 0.6% and the Chinese Shanghai Composite fell 0.16%.