Stocks closed sharply lower on Wall Street on Friday as the number of confirmed new coronavirus cases in the United States hit an all-time high, stoking worries that the reopening of businesses investors have been banking on to revive the economy will be derailed.
Financial companies led stocks broadly higher on Wall Street on Thursday as traders welcomed news that the Federal Reserve and other regulators are removing some limits on the ability of banks to make investments.
U.S. stocks rose for a second day, but faded near the closing of the market as concern mounted that a spike in virus cases in some states could curtail economic activity.
U.S. futures swung wildly as the remarks caused concern that the deal signed in January, which paused the trade war between world’s two largest economies, was in jeopardy.
Because conventional economic reports on hiring, consumer confidence and spending can lag a month or more, investment strategists are looking at other indicators.
Markets have been trending upward this week, but rising levels of coronavirus infections in several hotspots around the world are raising concerns that all the improvements could get upended.
Friday’s rebound was a reversal for the market, which sold off for three days in a row as a rise in COVID-19 cases and a discouraging economic outlook from the Federal Reserve dashed investor optimism for a quick economic recovery.
The sell-off this week marks a reversal for the market, which rallied 44.5% between late March and Monday, a scorching rate that many skeptics said was unsustainable and didn’t reflect the dire condition of the economy.
The S&P 500 climbed back within 4.5% of its own record, as optimism strengthens that the worst of the recession may have already passed.
The S&P 500 jumped another 2.6% after a report said the U.S. job market surprisingly strengthened last month, bolstering hopes that the worst of the recession may have already passed.
The S&P 500 is now down less than 6% from its record high set in February after being down nearly 34% earlier this year when recession worries were peaking.
The S&P 500 has surged nearly 40% since late March. The index is back above where it was on Feb. 26, one week after setting its record.
Wall Street absorbed better-than-expected economic data: Private payrolls shed 2.76 million jobs in May, ADP reported Wednesday. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones had expected a drop of 8.75 million.
The Dow Jones industrial average jumped 553 points Wednesday, about 2.2 percent. Financial stocks and beaten-up industrials helped power the blue chips—a comeback that signals confidence in the recovery.
Stocks surged on Wall Street in morning trading Tuesday, driving the S&P 500 to its highest level in nearly three months.
The Nasdaq composite index rose to within 1% of erasing losses for the year, led by Alphabet after it reported an ad-sales slowdown that wasn’t as bad as expected.
Companies are being affected in different ways during the pandemic, but if there’s a common theme, it’s that the situation was bad in the first quarter, and it’s going to get worse.
With central banks and governments promising overwhelming amounts of aid for markets and economies, some investors are looking beyond the economic devastation currently sweeping the world.
The Indianapolis-based media company, which has been a publicly traded business since 1994, said that it was pursuing the delisting to save money.
U.S. stocks sank to their worst loss in weeks as worries swept markets worldwide about the economic carnage caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
