5 Things to Know Before the Stock Market Opens Thursday

1. Stocks set to drop as the Covid-19 vaccine-inspired rally pauses

Dow futures pointed to an over 150 point decline at Thursday's open as Wall Street continues to assess record spikes in new U.S. daily coronavirus cases. On Wednesday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed slightly lower after soaring nearly 1,100 points in a two session rally on Covid-19 vaccine optimism that added to last week's almost 7% gain. The Nasdaq jumped 2% on Wednesday, breaking a sharp two session losing streak that was fueled by the pummeling of stay-at-home tech stocks.

The Labor Department is out with its weekly look at jobless claims at 8:30 a.m. ET. Economists expect 740,000 initial filings for unemployment benefits for the week ending Nov. 7. That would be down 11,000 from the prior week but still well above pre-pandemic levels. The government also releases its October consumer price index at 8:30 a.m. ET. An hour later, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell makes a virtual appearance at a ECB forum on central banking at 9:30 a.m. ET.

2. Another U.S. company could soon release coronavirus vaccine trial data

Chandan Khanna | AFP | Getty Images
Biotechnology company Moderna protocol files for COVID-19 vaccinations are kept at the Research Centers of America in Hollywood, Florida, on August 13, 2020.

Shares of Moderna, already up over 300% this year, rose 5% in Thursday's premarket trading after the U.S. biotech firm said it had enough data from a late-stage trial of its Covid-19 vaccine candidate to begin a planned interim analysis. Moderna did not specify when it planned to release data on the vaccine's effectiveness. On Monday, Pfizer and BioNTech said that data from their Covid-19 vaccine trial showed more than 90% efficacy. Top U.S. infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci said on Wednesday that a high degree of effectiveness for Moderna would make sense since its vaccine is "almost identical" to Pfizer's candidate.

3. States begin to re-impose coronavirus mitigation restrictions as cases surge

Wang Ying | Xinhua News Agency | Getty Images
Pedestrians walk past an advertisement of COVID-19 test in New York, the United States, Nov. 9, 2020.

The U.S. reported over 144,100 new coronavirus cases Wednesday, the worst single day of the pandemic and the ninth straight day of 100,000-plus infections. In fact, the 7-day new case average of more than 127,600 hit another record, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. Wednesday also saw 1,984 Covid-19 deaths, the worst total since early May, and a record number of people hospitalized with the disease. Starting Thursday, New Jersey put some coronavirus mitigation restrictions back into effect. New York is set to re-impose similar curbs on Friday.

4. Biden coronavirus advisor says a nationwide Covid-19 lockdown would help

Glen Stubbe | Star Tribune | Getty Images
Dr. Michael Osterholm, Regents Professor, McKnight Presidential Endowed Chair in Public Health, and director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota, announced advances for COVID-19 testing in Minnesota, Wednesday, April 22, 2020 in St. Paul, MN.

Dr. Michael Osterholm, a coronavirus advisor to President-elect Joe Biden, said in an interview Wednesday that a nationwide lockdown would help control the spread of Covid-19 and revive the U.S. economy. Osterholm, who serves as director of the Center of Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota, said earlier this week that the country is headed toward "Covid hell."

Larry Downing | Reuters
U.S. Vice President Joe Biden (R) is joined by Ebola Response Coordinator Ron Klain (L) in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House complex in Washington, U.S. November 13, 2014.

Biden is moving forward with his transition even as President Donald Trump continues denounce and fight the election result. The president-elect picked his longtime adviser Ron Klain as his chief of staff. Klain served as the White House coordinator to the Ebola response during the 2014 outbreak when Biden served as vice president under former President Barack Obama.

5. Two more people from Trump's Election Night party test positive for coronavirus

Patrick Semansky | AP
White House Political Director Brian Jack, from left, Deputy Staff Secretery Catherine Keller, Counselor to the President Kellyanne Conway, aide John McEntee and White House Social Media Director Dan Scavino walk across the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, Thursday, Jan. 23, 2020.

Two more people who attended an Election Night party at the White House have been diagnosed with the coronavirus, NBC News reported on Wednesday. That brings the current tally of Covid-19 cases from the event to at least five, including Trump's White House chief of staff Mark Meadows.

Carlos Barria | Reuters
U.S. President Donald Trump departs after placing a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Solider as he attends a Veterans Day observance in the rain at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia, November 11, 2020.

After his first public appearance since Biden was declared the winner on Saturday, Trump met with his top election advisors Wednesday to discuss a path forward. The meeting came as NBC News reported that there's growing expectation among Trump's advisors that the president will never concede that he lost to Biden, even when ballots are certified in coming weeks around the country.