By NEW YORK, Nov 6 Reuters U.S. stocks hovered near unchanged on Friday to close out with a big weekly gain as Democratic challenger Joe Biden edged closer to victory in the presidential election, while the monthly jobs report underscored the hurdles still facing the economy.
Biden built on narrow leads in Pennsylvania and Georgia, putting him on the verge of winning the White House, although President Donald Trump has filed lawsuits in battleground states to contest the results.
Both the SP 500 and Nasdaq notched their biggest weekly percentage gains since April as the prospect of a policy gridlock in Washington eased worries a Biden administration might tighten regulations on U.S. companies.
Its not fairytale land, we dont go up every day so at some point you would think we would see a little bit of downward pressure, said JJ Kinahan, chief market strategist at TD Ameritrade in Chicago.
Control of the U.S. Senate could hinge on four asyet undecided races. If Republicans retain their majority, they would likely block large parts of Bidens legislative agenda, including expanding healthcare and fighting climate change.
There is some concern with regards to if Biden creeps ahead or wins Georgia then there is chance that those Senate seats will follow. Thats what people are reading into this, said Yousef Abbasi, global market strategist at Stonex Group Inc, New York.
The governments closely watched report showed unemployment dropped sharply to 6.9 last month from 7.7…
