Nasdaq finishes at fresh record but Dow ends lower

NEW YORK - The Nasdaq powered to a fresh record Monday, benefiting from continued bullishness on tech stocks that have prospered during the coronavirus pandemic.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index finished at 11,129.73, up 1.0 percent.

The broad-based S&P 500 gained 0.3 percent to close at 3,381.99, narrowly missing a record of its own, but the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.3 percent to end at 27,844.91.

The Nasdaq has notched new records more than 30 times this year, including several in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak that has driven millions of people to shif to working from home and boosting demand for products such as video conferencing, video games and movie streaming.

Nasdaq companies with especially large gains Monday included gaming company Activision Blizzard, online payments company PayPal and biotech company Amgen.

Analysts pointed to loose US monetary policy and positive housing data as other supportive factors to stocks during Monday's session, as low borrowing rates have buoyed homebuilders.

Goldman Sachs analysts cited the boost from low interest rates in a note that lifted its year-end forecast for the S&P 500 to 3,600 from 3,000.

Stock market investors have largely shrugged off the economic drag from Washington's failure to enact a new fiscal package to support the coronavirus-ravaged US economy.

However, some sectors remained under pressure Monday, with banks such as JPMorgan Chase and Citigroup losing more than two percent and Delta Air Lines, American Airlines and other carriers dropping between 3.0 percent and 5.3 percent.

AFP