New York (AFP)

The New York Stock Exchange opened close to equilibrium Thursday the day after Joe Biden's official start of the presidency of the United States, the day before having been marked by new records on Wall Street.

Around 3:00 p.m. GMT, the index of flagship stocks, the Dow Jones Industrial Average, dropped 0.07% to 31,165.43 points.

The extended S&P 500 index lost 0.02% to 3,850.92 points.

The Nasdaq, with strong technological coloring, rose 0.18% to 13,481.42 points.

On Wednesday, the three main New York stock indexes had reached new highs, driven in particular by the prospect of additional support measures for the US economy with the Biden administration.

"The American stock market took a break at the start of the session after yesterday's rise which broke records, a new political page having been turned with the inauguration of Joe Biden as 46th president of the United States", note the experts of Charles Schwab.

The earnings season also continued for listed companies.

The US carrier United Airlines fell 5.14% after announcing a loss of $ 7.1 billion in 2020, a black year for global air traffic due to the pandemic and travel restrictions on Wednesday evening.

The insurance company Travelers (+ 3.51%), a member of the Dow Jones, published Thursday morning better than expected results.

After Thursday's close, IT groups Intel and IBM will report on their quarterly health check.

Among the indicators, weekly jobless claims fell a little in the United States over a week, after a sharp increase the previous week, but remain at an exceptionally high level, according to data released Thursday by the Department of Labor.

New housing starts in the country rose more than expected in December, confirming the good performance of the sector, according to data from the Department of Commerce released Thursday.

© 2021 AFP