· Wall Street ends lower as coronavirus surge prompts renewed restrictions
Wall Street’s major indexes tumbled more than 2% on Friday as several U.S. states imposed business restrictions in response to a surge in coronavirus cases.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 730.05 points, or 2.84%, to 25,015.55, the S&P 500 lost 74.71 points, or 2.42%, to 3,009.05 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 259.78 points, or 2.59%, to 9,757.22.
For the week, the S&P 500 fell 2.87%, the Dow lost 3.31%, and the Nasdaq shed 1.87%.
Some U.S. states that were spared the brunt of the initial coronavirus outbreak or moved early to lift restrictions are seeing a resurgence in new infections. On Friday, Texas and Florida ordered bars to close down again.
A Wall Street Journal report that the Phase 1 U.S.-China trade deal could be at risk placed additional pressure on U.S. stocks. According to that report, Chinese officials warned that “meddling” in Hong Kong and Taiwan could lead Beijing to back away from its commitment to purchase U.S. farm goods.
Renewed concerns over the novel coronavirus pandemic have threatened to derail a strong rally for Wall Street that has erased much of the S&P 500’s steep losses from March. The benchmark index ended below its 200-day moving average, an indicator of long-term momentum.
The uptick in coronavirus cases likely triggered a test of that technical level, said Jim Paulsen, chief investment strategist at The Leuthold Group in Minneapolis.
· Stock futures drop as U.S. coronavirus cases surge to record levels
U.S. stock futures fell on Sunday night as coronavirus cases keep surging in the U.S., stoking concerns about the economic reopening and recovery.
Dow Jones Industrial Average futures traded 178 points lower, or 0.7%. S&P 500 futures slid by 0.7% and Nasdaq-100 futures dipped 0.8%.
Data compiled by Johns Hopkins University showed more than 2.5 million cases have been confirmed across the U.S. On Friday alone, there were 45,255 additional cases were reported, bringing the country’s seven-day average to more than 41% from the prior week.
· Starbucks is the latest company to pause advertising across social media platforms
Starbucks is the latest company to say it will pause advertising on “all social media platforms” and promises to have discussions internally and with media partners and civil rights organizations to stop the spread of hate speech. The company will continue to post on social media without paid promotion, it announced Sunday.
Starbucks is the latest major advertiser to make such an announcement amid a boycott that began with Facebook but is now hitting other social media platforms. Coca Cola on Friday also said it would pause advertising on all social media platforms globally, while Unilever is halting advertising on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter in the U.S. through Dec. 31. On Saturday, spirits giant Diageo said it will be pausing paid advertising globally on “major social media platforms” beginning in July. A Starbucks spokesman said this social media pause will not include YouTube, which is owned by Google.
· European markets close lower amid coronavirus fears; Wirecard down 63%
European markets closed lower on Friday, amid concern over surging coronavirus cases in the U.S.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 closed 0.4% lower, with most sectors and major bourses in negative territory. Markets had advanced as much as 1.1% earlier in the session.
Those early gains were wiped out amid an increase in the number of coronavirus infections in the U.S., with Texas pausing the reopening of its economy after another record daily rise in new cases and hospitalizations.
· Shares in Asia Pacific fall as global coronavirus death toll crosses 500,000; oil prices decline
Stocks in Asia Pacific fell in Monday morning trade as the number of coronavirus cases globally continues to rise.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 slipped 1.5% while the Topix index fell 1.38%. South Korea’s Kospi also shed 0.98%.
Meanwhile, Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 dropped 1.65%.
Overall, the MSCI Asia ex-Japan index traded 0.31% lower.
Oil prices fell in the morning of Asian trading hours, with international benchmark Brent crude futures dropping 1.58% to $40.37 per barrel. U.S. crude futures also slipped 1.61% to $37.87 per barrel.
On the economic data front, retail sales in Japan dropped 12.3% year-on-year in May, according to the country’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry. That compared against a median market forecast of a 11.6%decline, according to Reuters.
Investors continued to monitor developments surrounding the global coronavirus pandemic amid concerns that a surge in cases could impact the reopening of economies. Globally, more than 500,000 lives have been taken by the coronavirus as the number of infections crosses 10 million, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.
In the U.S., coronavirus cases recently surged by more than 45,000 in a day, according to John Hopkins University data. The recent spike in cases stateside has led some states such as Texas and Florida to re-close some businesses.
Reference: CNBC, Reuters
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