The Dow Jones industrial average closed at a record high on Wednesday when the US Capitol closed after supporters of President Donald Trump stormed past barricades.
Vice President Mike Pence was escorted from the Senate floor during the counting of votes from the Electoral College confirming the election of President-elect Joe Biden.
Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser declared an evening bell in the district from 6 p.m. to 6 p.m. Thursday.
The Associated Press reported that the DC National Guard has been activated for tasks that may include maintaining the evening clock.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Majority Leader Nancy Pelosi issued a joint statement asking Trump to “demand that all protesters leave the U.S. Capitol and Capitol Grounds immediately,” he said. reported the AP.
Several Republican lawmakers have asked Trump to end the violence, NBC reported.
‘Mr President @realDonaldTrump the men and women of law enforcement are assaulted. “It is crucial that you help restore order by sending resources to help the police and asking those who do to stand up,” tweeted Marco Rubio, R-Fla.
Trump had earlier called on his supporters to “remain peaceful”, but he did not urge them to break up, reports AP.
The Dow closed 437 points, or 1.44%, to 30,829 and the S&P 500 rose 0.57% to 3,748.
Both the Dow and S&P 500 reached an intraday record.
The Nasdaq declined 0.61% to 12,740 after declining sharply earlier in the session over concerns that large technology companies could experience tighter monitoring under a Democratic-party-controlled Congress.
Rev. Raphael Warnock, a Democrat, defeated Republican Senator Kelly Loeffler in Georgia and won one of the two Senate runoffs in the state.
And the AP has invited the other run-off race in Georgia for Democrat Jon Ossoff against Republican Senator David Perdue.
The yield on the standard 10-year US Treasury note reached 1% for the first time since March.
The elections in Georgia gave the Democrats control over Congress and enabled them to strengthen the legislative agenda of President-elect Joe Biden.
The Democrats in the Senate stand on an equal footing with the Republicans, enabling elected Vice President Kamala Harris to cast the decisive vote in any 50-50 draw.
Analysts say a swing to the Democrats could lead to greater fiscal stimulus and higher taxes. Only one Republican victory in Georgia would have given the IDP enough votes to prevent Biden from pursuing its more ambitious policies on trade, energy and security.
“The stock markets have been moving higher over the last few months, and we are more likely to see a sector rotation in the market, rather than a sustained sell-off, as Democrats take full control of the government,” said Chris Zaccarelli. chief investment officer at Independent Advisor Alliance.
Federal Reserve officials unanimously supported in the minutes of its December meeting to keep the rate of central bank bond buying constant.
“All participants judged that it would be appropriate to continue the purchases at least at the current rate, and almost all preferred to maintain the current composition of purchases,” according to the minutes of the meeting.
Private payrolls at U.S. companies fell unexpectedly by 123,000 in December, the first drop since April, as the coronavirus pandemic shrank rents, particularly in the leisure and hospitality and retail industries.