Stocks jumped on Tuesday, Election Day in the U.S.A., as investors hoped for clarity from the U.S. presidential election and that a delayed, or contested, result would be avoided.
Fred Imbert and Maggie Fitzgerald for CNBC:
The Dow Jones Industrial Average traded 424 points higher, or 1.6%. The S&P 500 gained 1.2% and the Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.8%. “Ultimately, the markets want clarity, and the main threat to risk assets this week is the emergence of a contested election, so if races are tight enough for campaigns to sue to halt or extend recounts, expect a reversal of this morning’s rally,” Tom Essaye, founder of The Sevens Report, wrote in a note.
“As the election finally nears, investors who were selling on the rumor may now be buying on the news, and finally, after almost a 10% decline in the last month, buying on the dip is back,” Jim Paulsen, chief investment strategist at the Leuthold Group, told CNBC.
Stocks also got a boost after manufacturing activity in October jumped to its highest level in more than two years, pointing to a resilient economy in the face of the coronavirus. The ISM Manufacturing PMI rose to 59.3, a reading that indicates the percentage of companies reporting that activity expanded during the month.
MacDailyNews Note: Apple is up +$1.44 (+1.32%), to $110.21.