stock market

Shares of Apple, Facebook and Amazon all climbed more than one percent, leading to a 0.9 percent jump in the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index to 14,161.35.

The yield on the 10-year US Treasury note rose back above 1.6 percent, an indication of rising expectations on inflation.

Bitcoin jumped close to $36,500, having tanked on Sunday towards $30,000.

Goldman Sachs became the latest large bank to announce concrete plans to return staff to downtown New York.

Under Armour also agreed to "other non-monetary settlement terms," without elaborating.

Wall Street's major indices all fell, with the Dow retreating from an all-time high as the yield on US government debt rose.

Only earlier this month oil prices struck a 14-month high -- returning to pre-pandemic levels -- on reopening optimism.

Stocks prices of oil companies and airlines, which could lose the crucial summer travel season in Europe if cases continue to rise, suffered.

Chinese companies looking at selling shares in the city include Tencent's music group and video site Bilibili.

It counted close to 33 million daily players in 2020, and revenue soared 82 percent to $924 million.

All three major US indices fell sharply, but the tech-dominated Nasdaq was by far the weakest, sinking 3.5 percent.

Bitcoin topped $50,000 for the first time amid increased support from corporate heavyweights.

Bitcoin struck a fresh high of $48,663.05 as the cryptocurrency gained further mainstream support.

Bitcoin briefly pushed to a record-high of $48,215.83 after winning a huge boost Monday from news that Elon Musk's electric carmaker Tesla had invested $1.5 billion in the cryptocurrency.

On Wednesday, daily global deaths from Covid-19 topped 18,000 for the first time.

The biggest driver of the market rally in recent weeks has been hope for Biden's $1.9 trillion economic rescue plan.

The IPO market has also attracted interest in recent years due to the easier availability of financing, alongside ultra-low interest rates.

Investors worldwide appear to have set aside concerns over the pandemic for now, though it continues to cast a shadow as governments in some countries keep lockdowns in place.

The bad news included data showing spiking Covid-19 cases led in December to the first job losses since April.

Markets have been buoyed in recent months by the prospect of Republicans holding the Senate and provide a check on the Democrats but analysts said a "blue wave" scenario has spooked investors.

On December 24, Britain and the European Union agreed a post-Brexit deal that allayed the threat of disruption to business on January 1, when measures extending free trade are set to end.

The emergency US package is part of a larger spending bill that, with Trump's signature, will avoid a government shutdown on Tuesday.

Johnson warned last-gasp talks for a Brexit trade deal with the European Union could fail, and urged the public to prepare for a "no deal."

JD Health's total revenue rose to 8.8 billion yuan ($1.34 billion) in the first half of 2020 from 5 billion yuan in the same period last year, it said in its prospectus.

Shares in Boeing jumped 6.0 percent, helping to lift the Dow on a mixed day for US equities.

Tesla produces far fewer cars than traditional manufacturers, but is clearly favored by markets.

The rally petered out on Tuesday, with the Dow closing 0.6 percent lower and the Nasdaq and S&P 500 also ending in the red.

With logistics proving a headache, the economic benefits from the vaccine likely will not be seen until the second half of next year, observers warned.

The Trump campaign has already mounted legal challenges in several states, but no evidence has emerged of any widespread irregularities that would affect the results.

The greenback is sitting at its lowest levels against the yen since the dark days of March when the virus began battering the world economy