S&P 500 sets new record, closing off robust week for markets

The S&P 500 closed at a record high Friday, as traders focused on good news about a potential COVID-19 vaccine and brushed off the current spike in infections.

The index closed up 48 points, a 1.4 percent increase, at 3,585. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, meanwhile, closed up 400 points, or 1.4 percent.

Markets surged following President-elect Joe Biden’s win, alongside likely GOP control of the Senate. The Senate’s fate will be decided in two runoff elections in January, both of which Democrats would need to win in order to take control of the chamber.

Markets tend to thrive under a divided government.

They were also dramatically boosted by Pfizer’s announcement that its COVID-19 vaccine candidate proved 90 percent effective in early analyses.

But markets seemed largely unfazed by a steady rise in infections, which have surpassed 100,000 for nearly two weeks, and risen precipitously alongside hospitalizations and deaths.

A slew of states, including New York, Vermont, Idaho and Virginia, have announced new restrictions, while New Mexico announced a two-week lockdown.