Stocks mixed as post-Brexit trade deal reached The Dow and S&P advanced slightly as better than expected jobless claims and durable goods reports provided support to equities, as did news that the outline of a post-Brexit trade agreement has been reached. The rise in the S&P came despite President Donald Trump expressing his displeasure with the stimulus bill put forward, calling for an increase in direct payments to $2,000 from the current $600. The market still appears to be expecting that a compromise will be reached and a bill will be passed that he is willing to sign. ECONOMIC EVENTS: In the U.S., personal income dropped 1.1% in November and consumption slid 0.4%, both of which were weaker then expected. Initial jobless claims fell 89,000 to 803,000 in the week ended December 19. Durable goods orders increased 0.9% in November. The FHFA house price index jumped 1.5% in October to a new all-time high of 307.0. The final University of Michigan sentiment figure for December undershot estimates with a downwardly revised rise to 80.7 from a 76.9 reading in November. In the U.K., the outline of a historic post-Brexit trade agreement has been reached, Bloomberg reported. Negotiators are still putting the finishing touches to an accord, officials told Bloomberg. The accord would draw a line under almost five years of often tempestuous negotiations since the U.K. voted to withdraw from the EU in 2016 and lay the foundations for Britain to trade and collaborate with the bloc going forward. TOP NEWS: Pfizer ($PFE) shares were 1.9% higher after the company and BioNTech ($BNTX) announced a second agreement with the U.S. government to supply an additional 100M doses of the companies' COVID-19 vaccine from production facilities in the U.S. This agreement brings the total number of doses to be delivered to the U.S. to 200M. The companies expect to deliver the full 200M doses to Operation Warp Speed, or OWS, by July 31, 2021. In other COVID-19 news, Moderna ($MRNA) announced that Health Canada has authorized its vaccine against COVID-19 for the immunization of people 18 years of age and older under an Interim Order. The authorization comes under Health Canada's Interim Order Respecting the Importation, Sale and Advertising of Drugs for Use in Relation to COVID-19 and is based on a rolling review of data that was announced on October 12, 2020. Meanwhile, shares of General Motors ($GM) rose 3.8% after Bloomberg reported that CEO Mary Barra intends to provide a peek of upcoming electric vehicles at CES next month and bolster the automaker's credentials as a rising power in the EV space. The CEO is expected to explain how electrification is necessary step to address environmental and societal change, and how the car maker is ready to play a central role, according to Bloomberg. MAJOR MOVERS: Among the noteworthy gainers was Supernus ($SUPN), which surged 14.6% after its Phase 3 study of SPN-812 met its primary endpoint. Also higher was Sorrento Therapeutics ($SRNE), which gained 18.6% after announcing that an Emergency Use Authorization application has been submitted to the FDA for its COVI-STIX rapid diagnostic test for the detection of the SARS-CoV-2 virus nucleocapsid antigen in nasal samples. Among the notable losers was Nikola ($NKLA), which declined 10.7% after announcing that the company and Republic Services ($RSG) have discontinued their collaboration on refuse truck development. Also lower was FuboTV ($FUBO), which fell 15.4% after BMO Capital analyst Daniel Salmon downgraded shares to Market Perform from Outperform with a price target of $50, up from $33. Reviewing all of Wednesday's economic data dump:Personal income declined 1.1% m/m in November (Briefing.com consensus -0.2%), personal spending declined 0.4% (Briefing.com consensus -0.2%), the PCE Price Index was unchanged (Briefing.com consensus +0.2%) and the Core PCE Price Index was unchanged (Briefing.com consensus +0.2%).The key takeaway for the market isn't that the income and spending data were disappointing, it's that the totality of the disappointment will reassure the market that the Fed is going to remain its friend by sticking with extraordinarily accommodative monetary policy.Initial claims for the week ending December 19 decreased by 89,000 to 803,000 (Briefing.com consensus 860,000). Continuing claims for the week ending December 12 decreased by 170,000 to 5.337 million.The key takeaway from the report is the week-over-week improvement in both initial claims and continuing claims. Both are still way too high in the big picture, yet the trend is the market's trading friend today.New home sales decreased 11.0% m/m to 841,000 in November (Briefing.com consensus 990,000) from a downwardly revised 945,000 (from 999,000) in October. On a yr/yr basis, new home sales were up 20.8%.The key takeaway from the report is that new home sales, which are counted when contracts are signed, slowed in November from a torrid recovery pace. Limited supply and rising prices had some impact, yet the strength of the market continues to be evident in the 20.8% increase in sales yr/yr.New orders for durable goods increased 0.9% m/m in November (Briefing.com consensus 0.7%) while new orders, excluding transportation, increased 0.4% (Briefing.com consensus 0.5%).The key takeaway for the market is that there were order increases across most categories and that business spending stayed on a positive track, evidenced by the 0.4% increase in new orders for nondefense capital goods excluding aircraft.The final reading for the December University of Michigan Index of Consumer Sentiment was revised down to 80.7 from the preliminary reading of 81.4. The final reading marks an improvement from the final reading of 76.9 for November.The key takeaway from the report is that consumer sentiment was improved from November, notwithstanding the reports of rising coronavirus infections and deaths, as well as the stimulus uncertainty, that prevailed during the survey period.The FHFA Housing Price Index for December increased 1.5% following an unrevised 1.7% increase in November.The weekly MBA Mortgage Applications Index increased 0.8% following a 1.1% increase in the prior week.Nasdaq Composite +42.3% YTDRussell 2000 +20.3% YTDS&P 500 +14.2% YTDDow Jones Industrial Average +5.6% YTDMarket SnapshotDow30129.77+114.32(0.38%)Nasdaq12771.12-36.80(-0.29%)SP 5003690.01+2.75(0.07%)10-yr Note -3/320.956NYSEAdv 2115 Dec 997 Vol 813.0 mlnNasdaqAdv 2344 Dec 1378 Vol 6.9 blnIndustry WatchStrong: Energy, Financials, IndustrialsWeak: Information Technology, Real Estate, UtilitiesMoving the Market-- Value, cyclical, and small-cap stocks outperformed, but market lost steam into the close on no specific news-- President Trump called on Congress to increase stimulus checks to $2000 from $600-- Pfizer (PFE) and BioNTech (BNTX) reached a second agreement with the U.S. government for an additional 100 million doses of vaccine-- Treasury curve steepens amid selling in longer-dated maturities, oil prices rise Disclosure: I may trade in the ticker symbols mentioned, both long or short. 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