US stocks climbed on strong corporate earnings. The S&P 500 rose 1.9% and the Dow was up 0.6% for the week both hitting new record highs. Abroad, the FTSE All World Ex US gained 1.4% for the week. The yield on the 10-year Treasury was flat for the week ending at 1.10%.
China posted GDP growth of 6.5% in the fourth quarter. For the year the economy grew 2.3% despite the pandemic. It was the only major world economy to see growth in 2020.
Initial jobless claims eased slightly to 900,000 for the past week.
Business activity in the US picked up pace to start 2021, while Europe showed an increasing risk of a second recession.
To date 88% of companies that have reported earnings have beaten earnings estimates.