Wall Street Expects to Rise on Recovery
Wall Street was set to open higher on Wednesday as investors hope for a recovery from a coronavirus-fuelled slump. This was amid signs of more stimulus for ailing sectors, while retailer Lowe’s jumped up with upbeat quarterly results.
The home improvement chain rose 5.5% in premarket stock trading after posting higher first-quarter sales within stores. The Coronavirus lockdowns led people to spend more on home remodelling and repairs.
The U.S. stock market has now rallied by more than 30% from the March lows on the unprecedented stimulus. Gains have been limited this month, as Wall Street stock traders digest mixed headlines on progress in developing a vaccine.
The S&P 500 tumbled 1% in the final hour of Tuesday’s session. This was after a report raised doubts about the positive results from Moderna Inc’s early-stage trial for a vaccine.
They don’t expect very big gains from here but they don’t expect a downward trend either. This was from a statement of Simona Gambarini, markets economist at Capital Economics in London.
The lockdowns are easing and the coronavirus epidemic is now under control in more and more countries. Some recovery in the economy is already factoring into equity prices.
The government and central bank were considering more measures to ensure the worst-stricken areas of the economy received adequate support. This was according to U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell.
Wall Street Eyes are on the Outcome of the Meeting
Wall Street investors await the FOMC minutes due later in the day from the Fed’s latest policy meeting.
Dow e-minis were up by 279 points, or 1.15% while S&P 500 e-minis were up by 32 points or 1.1%. Moreover, Nasdaq 100 e-minis were up by 92.75 points or 1%.
Target Corp reported a 64% plunge in quarterly profits, pummeled by costs to tackle the coronavirus outbreak. However, its shares rose on the back of a jump in online sales.
Facebook Inc, Amazon.com Inc, Apple, Netflix Inc, and Google-parent Alphabet Inc rose between 0.9% and 2.6%.
Bank of America Corp, Citigroup Inc, and JPMorgan Chase & Co were up about 2%.
Delta Air Lines Inc has gained 3.1% in the stock market. This was after its chief executive officer said travel will return in the next 12 to 18 months. Moreover, United Airlines Holdings has gained 3.5%.
Immunotherapy company, Inovio Pharmaceuticals Inc, surged by 23.3%. This was after saying its experimental vaccine produced protective antibodies and immune system responses in mice and guinea pigs.
Meanwhile, stocks open higher on Wall Street a day after a late slide.
