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US stocks edged up Wednesday amid a mixed run of earnings.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 69 points, or 0.2%, to 29,852 shortly after the opening bell. The S&P 500 added 0.1% and the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.1%.
Inventories have generally increased over the past month, supported by optimism that scientists are moving closer to producing and distributing coronavirus vaccines effective enough to reduce infection levels. A vaccine would improve the outlook for business owners and consumers by signaling that the economy will return to pre-Covid levels.
“Given the nature of this crisis, the only way out of this cycle of first wave, second wave, third wave [of infections] is to start circulating a vaccine, and that will start relatively soon, ”said James McCormick, strategist at NatWest Markets. “If you can convince consumers to both re-engage in the economy, and also have a job in the next six months, it frees up a major sector of the economy.”
Pfizer shares rose 2.7% at the start of the session. The drugmaker said on Wednesday that the final results of its joint clinical trial with BioNTech showed its coronavirus inoculation to be 95% effective and that it plans to seek authorization for the vaccine within days.
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