· Stocks close higher Friday but still end week in the red amid coronavirus uncertainty
The major U.S. equity benchmarks ended Friday's session solidly higher as investors took solace in the passage of another round of stimulus and a continued rebound in oil prices after a headlong crash earlier this week.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA rose 260 points, or 1.1% to end at around 23,775, the S&P 500 index added about 40 points, or 1.4% to 2,837 SPX and the Nasdaq Composite index COMP advanced 140 points, or 1.7%, to close at roughly 8,635.
For the week, the Dow lost 1.9%, the S&P 500 retreated 1.3% and the Nasdaq shed 0.2%, snapping a two-week winning streak for the indexes.
President Trump signed a $484 billion stimulus package that will replenish a fund for small-business lending and direct money to hospitals and efforts to ramp up U.S. testing capacity in the fight against COVID-19.
The bill will bring total federal spending on coronvirus to north of $2.7 trillion. Also helping lift sentiment was a third-straight day of gains for oil, following a major decline in prices earlier in the week that had fueled global growth worries.
· Stock futures fall as oil declines, traders weigh prospects of re-opening the economy
Stocks futures fell on Sunday night, following oil prices lower, while investors assessed the possibility of re-opening the global economy after the coronavirus outbreak.
Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were down 47 points, or 0.2%. S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 futures slid 0.4% and 0.2%, respectively. West Texas Intermediate futures were down 2.4% at $16.53 per barrel.
Wall Street’s coming off its first weekly decline in three as a record plunge in oil prices sent investors for a wild ride. Both the Dow and S&P 500 fell over 1% last week while the Nasdaq Composite dipped 0.2%.
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Sunday the state plans to re-open its economy in phases. The first phase, Cuomo said, would involve New York’s construction and manufacturing sectors. As part of the second phase, businesses will need to design plans for a re-opening that include social distancing practices and having personal protective equipment available.
Cuomo also noted that coronavirus-related hospitalizations have fallen for 14 days and that virus deaths in New York hit a near one-month low. Those comments came as Georgia started to re-open its economy.
· European stocks close higher with coronavirus, earnings and oil prices in focus
European stocks closed higher Thursday as the coronavirus pandemic, oil prices and corporate earnings remained in focus for investors.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 closed 1% higher provisionally, after whipsawing earlier as economic data out of the euro zone showed record deterioration due the coronavirus crisis. Oil and gas stocks soared 3% after oil prices appeared to stabilize.
· Asia Pacific stocks rise as Bank of Japan meets
Stocks in Asia Pacific rose in morning trade on Monday, with the Bank of Japan due to kick off its monetary policy meeting.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 rose 0.91% as shares of index heavyweights Fast Retailing and Softbank Group gained more than 1% each. The Topix index also advanced 0.47%.
The Japanese central bank begins its monetary policy meeting on Monday, as investors watch for policy moves from the central bank to grapple with the economic impact of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
Over in South Korea, the Kospi added 0.31%. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 also edged fractionally higher.
Overall, the MSCI Asia ex-Japan index traded 0.09% higher.
· Bank of Japan to expand stimulus again as pandemic pain deepens
The Bank of Japan is expected to expand monetary stimulus on Monday for the second straight month to ease corporate funding strains and finance huge government spending aimed at combating the deepening economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic.
Reference: Market Watch, CNBC
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