US stocks close at records after Congress certifies Biden's victory

US stock indices closed higher on Thursday, after the Congress ratified Democratic candidate Joe Biden's election victory, in addition to positive economic data, which was reflected in new closing records, ahead of the monthly jobs report.

This came following the political tensions in Washington after a fiery speech by US President Donald Trump that he will not concede the election results.

After the speech thousands of Trump supporters yesterday stormed the US Capitol building to protest the session that declared Joe Biden the new President of the United States.

Sources said that US President Donald Trump is considering about his self-pardon power for any event or decision that might bring him to court.

House Speaker called on Vice President Mike Pence to invoke the 25th Amendment to remove Trump from office, otherwise the Congress would have to take this step.

Meanwhile, data showed today that the initial unemployment claims in the US fell 3,000 to 787,000 last week, and the ISM US service PMI rose to 57.2 points in December.

The US Labor Department will release December's monthly jobs report on Friday, amid forecasts of 68,000 new jobs added during December, and the unemployment rate rising to 6.8% from 6.7%.

To the oil market, WTI crude February futures rose 0.4% or 20 cents, and closed at $50.83 a barrel, after hitting a day high of $51.2 and a low of $50.3.

Brent March futures rose 0.2% or 8 cents, and closed at $54.38 a barrel, after hitting a high of $54.9 and a low of $53.9.

As for stocks, Dow Jones rose 0.7% or 211 points, and closed at 31,041, with a day high of 31,193, and a low of 30,897.

S&P 500 rose 1.5% or 55 points to 3,803, after hitting a high of 3,811 and a low of 3,764.

Nasdaq rose 2.5% or 326 points to 1,3067, with a high of 13,090 and a low of 12,867.