US: Wall Street ends volatile week with gains, S&P at record

[NEW YORK] After an unpredictable week, Wall Street finished Friday on a high note, shrugging off concerns over the surge in Covid-19 cases and new pandemic restrictions that threaten to slow the US economy.

The benchmark Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.4 percent to close at 29,479.81.

The broad-based S&P 500 also added 1.4 per cent to 3,585.15, a new record, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index climbed 1 per cent to 11,829.29.

"Festering concerns regarding the implications of the persistent surge in new Covid-19 cases also had a hand in the bumpiness this week," Charles Schwab investment bank said, adding that "The earnings front continued to paint a positive picture."

Dow-member Walt Disney gained 1.7 per cent after reporting its recently launched streaming television service Disney+ had hit 73 million subscribers, despite the company losing US$710 million in the latest quarter.

And fellow Dow member Cisco Systems jumped 7 per cent after topping earnings forecasts.

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Stocks that would benefit from a resumption of normal trade and travel patterns once a coronavirus vaccine becomes widespread also resumed their upward climb.

Cruise line Carnival Corp surged 7.2 per cent, and Southwest Airlines jumped 4.7 per cent.

But video conferencing platform Zoom, which has become popular during the pandemic, fell 5.8 per cent.

AFP