Stock market news live updates: Stock futures drift as stimulus progress remains elusive

Stock futures were flat Wednesday evening as traders considered an ongoing stalemate on more stimulus talks in Washington alongside the unabated spread of the coronavirus across the country

Earlier during the regular session, the three major indices ended the session lower, and the Nasdaq sold off by nearly 2%, as lawmakers appeared to still be far from convening on the scope of another round of virus relief aid. Meanwhile, shares of Facebook (FB) added to losses in late trading after the U.S. Federal Trade Commission and 48 attorneys general filed an antitrust lawsuit against the social media giant

On the stimulus front, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer rejected Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin’s $916 billion plan he offered earlier this week, as it includes fewer funds for unemployment benefits. And Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has balked liability protections and state and local government aid included in a bipartisan group of lawmaker’s $916 billion outline

The coronavirus relief package was expected to be attached to the government’s broader spending bill for the fiscal year, which lawmakers also have still not passed. In an effort to buy more time to reach an agreement, the House of Representatives passed a one-week government funding extension to avoid a government shutdown. The Senate is also expected to pass the stopgap funding bill.

New data Thursday will likely underscore the increasing economic toll from the latest surge in coronavirus cases as lawmakers stall in passing a new round of relief measures. Economists expect the Labor Department’s weekly report out Thursday morning will show that jobless claims rose last week, as new virus-related business restrictions across the country put more Americans out of work

Despite Wednesday’s broader stock market drop, one pocket of the market performed exceptionally well: newly public companies. DoorDash (DASH) on Wednesday debuted with a stock pop of 78% above its initial public offering price of $102 per share. The unprofitable food delivery company’s market capitalization ballooned to about $68 billion, or multiples above the $16 billion valuation it last fetched in private markets. Software company C3.ai (AI), meanwhile, saw shares more than double in their first day of trading

Airbnb (ABNB) is set to price its IPO Wednesday evening, and shares are set to begin trading Thursday on the Nasdaq. The company said in a filing earlier this week it was targeting raising up tp $3.1 billion in an IPO to give the company a fully diluted valuation of about $42 billion

Resource(s): Yahoo Finance