US Stock Market Overview

  • November 14, 2020 6:13 AM PST
    US Stock Market Overview

    US stocks were mixed on Friday
    following a stronger than expected payroll report. Sectors were mixed,
    with technology and healthcare rising, and energy and real estate
    underperforming. The dollar hit a fresh 2-month low on Friday, which
    helped buoy gold and silver prices. Oil prices dropped by nearly 4%,
    which weighed on energy shares. The US election results moved closer to
    declaring a winner, as Vice President Biden took the lead in
    Pennsylvania, Nevada, and Georgia. President Trump was quiet on Friday
    but did a press conference on Thursday where he accused the system of
    fraud and said that the Democrats were attempting to steal the election
    from him. The VIX volatility index, which measures volatility on the “at
    the money” strike prices on the S&P 500 index, dropped 33% for the
    week, settling near 25.To get more news about [url=https://www.wikifx.com/]WikiFX[/url], you can visit wikifx official website.
      Payrolls Rise More than Expected

      US nonfarm payrolls increased by 638,000 according to the Labor
    Department. This is compared to a 530,000 increase expected. The
    unemployment rate was at 6.9%, compared to expectations that it would be
    edged down to 7.7%. The September level of 7.9% was unchanged. The
    decline in the unemployment rate came despite an uptick in the labor
    force participation rate that rose 0.3 percentage points to 61.7%. An
    alternative measure that includes discouraged workers and those holding
    part-time jobs for economic reasons also fell, to 12.1% from 12.8% a
    month ago.
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      The Household survey showed a
    robust 2.24 million increase in payrolls. Octobers gains would have been
    even better if not for the loss of 147,000 Census workers that
    contributed to an overall fall of 268,000 in government jobs. The
    biggest job gains came in the hardest-hit sector during the pandemic, as
    leisure and hospitality jumped by 271,000. Of that total, bars and
    restaurants increased 192,000.