Market Update

Hope all is well with you and your family.  The major U.S. stock indexes each rose more than 3%, and the S&P 500 posted its best weekly result in three months. The NASDAQ Composite’s nearly 5% rise was the biggest gain among the indexes, leaving it just 4% shy of the record high it set in early September.  Here's a quick recap of the week that was. 

Investing In The Unknown
As third-quarter earnings reports start to come in, an unusually large number of companies remain reluctant to offer financial guidance for their full-year 2020 and 2021 results, owing largely to uncertainty from the pandemic. Globally, the pace of COVID-19 cases continued to rise, weighing on prospects for economic growth. As of Friday, 147 companies in the S&P 500 that have traditionally issued annual earnings guidance had done so, compared with 138 that hadn’t, according to FactSet. 

Coronavirus Relief Coming??
Markets dropped initially on news the President was linking the aid package to the election.  Market sentiment was later boosted by signs that White House officials and congressional leaders were bridging differences on measures to help airlines, small businesses, and households. These measures are unlikely to take effect before the election, but the resumption of coronavirus relief talks fueled optimism. 

Fed Chair's Plea
U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell issued a warning to Congress and the White House, saying the risks of not doing enough to provide further coronavirus-related economic relief are greater than the risks of doing too much. Powell said that the economic recovery is still at an early stage and the current expansion is “far from complete.”

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