· S&P 500 and Nasdaq jump to record highs, Dow climbs more than 100 points
The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite rose to record highs on Wednesday as tech shares outperformed while investors continued to weigh the coronavirus’ impact on the global economy.
The broad index closed 0.5% higher at 3,386.15, breaking above a previous all-time high of 3,385.09, while the Nasdaq climbed nearly 0.9% to 9,817.18. Meanwhile, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 115.84points, or 0.4% to close at 29,348.03.
Bloomberg News reported, citing people familiar with the matter, that China is considering the use of cash infusions and mergers to bail out its airline industry, which has been hit by the coronavirus.
· Goldman says market underestimating coronavirus risk: ‘Correction is looking much more probable’
Goldman Sachs sounded the alarm on Wednesday to clients about a possible correction in the stock market, noting investors are underestimating how big of a risk the coronavirus really is.
“We believe the greater risk is that the impact of the coronavirus on earnings may well be underestimated in current stock prices, suggesting that the risks of a correction are high,” strategist Peter Oppenheimer wrote in a note.
· Japan stocks jump as investors await China’s loan prime rate release ahead
Shares in Japan jumped in early trade on Thursday, with the People’s Bank of China widely expected to cut its loan prime rate as the country grapples with the economic impact of an ongoing coronavirus outbreak.
The Nikkei 225 jumped 1.51% as shares of index heavyweight and conglomerate Softbank Group soared 3.06%. The Topix index also advanced 1.1%. South Korea’s Kospi added 0.54%.
Stocks in Australia also saw gains as the S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.44%. Australian jobs data for January is expected to be released at 8:30 a.m. HK/SIN.
Shares of airline Qantas surged more than 6% after the company announced on Thursday it was adjusting its capacity to Asia until at least late May 2020 in light of the ongoing coronavirus outbreak whose impact it said is “unfolding and the outlook is uncertain.”
Overall, the MSCI Asia ex-Japan index traded 0.12% higher.
Reference: CNBC, Reuters
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