Stocks rose on the eve of Election Day as Wall Street looked ahead to the benefits of a possibly split government in Washington, though trading is likely to stay bumpy in a week full of events that could shake the market. The S&P 500 rose 36.25 points, or 1%, to 3,806.80. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 423.78 points, or 1.3%, to 32,827. The Nasdaq rose 89.27 points, or 0.9%, to 10,564.52. Analysts say many investors seem to be making bets that Republicans will take control of at least one house of Congress, the AP reports. With a divided government, gridlock is more likely than big, sweeping policy changes that could upend tax and spending plans.
Apple was little changed following an earlier drop after the company warned customers they’ll have to wait longer to get the latest iPhones after anti-virus restrictions were imposed on a contractor’s factory in China. Facebook's parent company rose 6.5% after the Wall Street Journal reported that the company plans to make a big round of layoffs this week. Cruise lines and other travel-related companies fell. Norwegian Cruise Line, which reports financial results Tuesday, slipped 1.6%. Several other big companies will report results this week, including Walt Disney on Tuesday.
Tuesday’s election will decide control of Congress and key governorships. History suggests the party in power may suffer losses in the midterms, and decades-high inflation has become a significant issue for the Democrats. Markets usually prefer a mixed balance of power that equates to few major changes in policy. Stubbornly hot inflation and the Federal Reserve's policy of raising interest rates to fight it remain the big concerns for Wall Street. Investors will get an important update on inflation Thursday when the US government releases its report on consumer prices for October. Wall Street expects consumer prices to have risen 8% in October from a year ago, which would be a slight cooling from an 8.2% increase in September.
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