New York (AFP)

The New York Stock Exchange was trying to resume before Friday after the losses of the day before caused by fears of a rise in capital gains tax for the richest in the United States.

At 2:00 p.m. GMT, the Dow Jones, which had started in the red just after the opening, advanced 0.14% to 33,863.19 points.

The Nasdaq, with strong technological coloring, gained 0.74% to 13,920.45 points.

The S&P 500 gained 0.24% to 4,144.48 points.

On Thursday, the Dow Jones and the Nasdaq both dropped 0.94% to stand at 33,815.90 points and 13,818.41 points respectively.

The S&P 500 had dropped 0.92% to 4,134.98 points.

"Given the high level of the market, investors have been inclined to find reasons to take profits," said Art Hogan of National Securities.

"The catalyst appeared Thursday afternoon" with the news report that "the White House intends to propose to almost double the capital gains tax rate for those earning more than a million dollars per year, "added the analyst, stressing that this would concern however 0.32% of US taxpayers.

According to the New York Times and the Bloomberg agency, earnings from stock market transactions could thus be taxed at a rate of 39.6% instead of 20% currently for the wealthiest Americans.

The results of companies have however continued overall "to fuel optimism for strong growth in 2021 but concerns about the increase in Covid-19 cases in several regions of the world dampens the enthusiasm somewhat", Schwab analysts noted, as a state of emergency has been declared in Tokyo and India sinks into the health crisis.

The semiconductor giant Intel, which nevertheless recorded a better-than-expected result despite declining sales, dropped more than 7%.

The title of toy maker Mattel climbed 8.62% after sales soaring in the first quarter, thanks to Barbie dolls.

During the pandemic, sales of figures, construction sets and companies rose 69%.

American Express dropped 6%.

The financial group saw its result register an increase thanks to the release of reserves but its turnover declined in the first quarter in particular due to a reduction in travel expenses.

Yields on 10-year Treasuries edged up to 1.56% from 1.54% the day before.

© 2021 AFP