Finally comes a respite for markets worldwide with the White House signing a Covid-19 savior package to the tune of $2.3 trillion. The panic of unemployment and lack of stimulus had spread the week widely before, and there was a lot of unrest among Americans with an uncertainty of the bill getting signed by President Donald Trump.
After Trump signed the bill, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., insisted that he urges Republicans to support the bill encouraging the size of the cash deposits. Her response statement was recorded to media as, “Any denial to this bill would be denying bread and butter to Americans and put the lives of families to hardship.” Pelosi was also quoted stating that this relief legislation for a need of the hour to contain the pandemic and honor the front-line warriors.
Whatever it be, it would boost the London Stock Exchange’s FTSE 100 index though the market was closed for Christmas. More than the vaccine and Brexit, this proved to be a great relief for the European stocks that otherwise were languishing on the stock exchange. S&P futures rose 0.62%. European shares are sure to follow suit, with Euro Stoxx 50 futures shooting beyond 0.42%.
CAC indices of France showed a rise of 0.5% and Germany’s DAX rose to 1.3%, and Deutsche Post was shining with an added 3% surge on active sentiment. Italy’s Saipem was making headlines showing a great boost and 1.9%. Even though most of Europe was closed for Christmas, this indeed would foster the EU member community greatly.
The stimulus offered allocates a substantial portion for unemployment benefits, higher education incentives, direct payments to individuals, aid to small businesses, and distribution of the vaccine. A major portion of aid addresses protection program loans and rental assistance along with transportation relief. There exists still a debate that the relief package offered is still not sufficient in comparison to the massive crisis the economy is combating. Democrats have been insisting that more stress and demand shall be imposed for yet another relief bill, headlined by direct payments once President-elect Joe Biden takes office on January 20.