Traders on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange
Source: The New York Stock Exchange
The futures contract, which is linked to major US equities positions, was in an even trade on Thursday because Wall Street looked like it would end the week with a moderate profit.
The Dow Jones industrial average fell 30 points. S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq 100 futures both traded about 0.1% lower.
Shares of Disney rose more than 2% in long-term trading after the company reported strong growth in paid streaming subscribers and slashed expectations in its earnings report for its fiscal first quarter of 2021. Disney has said it now has nearly 95 million paid subscribers on its Disney + stream. service.
The main averages are on track to achieve a positive week at record levels, although the strong rally starting in February is taking a breather. The blue-chip Dow fell slightly from a record on Thursday, while the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite both exchanged and hit record highs.
The market honed higher as investors hoped for a smooth economic reopening as well as additional Covid stimulus. The Dow rose 0.9% this week, bringing its February gains to 4.8%. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq have risen 0.8% and 1.2%, respectively, so far this week, rising 5.4% and 7.3% this month.
“Between the ongoing medical and economic improvements, the markets are still expecting a much better 2021 and this has supported prices,” Brad McMillan, chief investment officer of Commonwealth Financial Network, said in a note. “Fourth-quarter earnings are faring better than expected, and analysts are now adjusting their revenue estimates for 2021.”
President Joe Biden said on Thursday that his government had obtained deals for another 200 million doses of Moderna and Pfizer’s Covid-19 vaccine, bringing the total to $ 600 million. He added that by the end of July, the US would have enough supplies for 300 million Americans.
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