Dow pops 1,985 points as Trump's national emergency enlists Google, Walmart in coronavirus fight
The nation's biggest companies have joined together to fight the coronavirus
U.S. equity markets soared in the final hour of trading as President Trump declared a national emergency over the coronavirus and enlisted the nation's biggest companies in the fight.
A HISTORICAL LOOK AT THE DOW'S BIGGEST SWINGS
The Dow Jones Industrial Average surged by over 1,985 points or 9.3 percent. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite also rallied over 9 percent.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I:DJI | DOW JONES AVERAGES | 44782 | -128.65 | -0.29% |
| SP500 | S&P 500 | 6047.15 | +14.77 | +0.24% |
| I:COMP | NASDAQ COMPOSITE INDEX | 19403.947849 | +185.78 | +0.97% |
Google, Walmart, Target, CVS and others will assist health officials in combating the outbreak and helping with procedures and testing.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GOOGL | ALPHABET INC. | 171.49 | +2.54 | +1.50% |
| WMT | WALMART INC. | 92.64 | +0.14 | +0.15% |
| TGT | TARGET CORP. | 130.73 | -1.66 | -1.25% |
| CVS | CVS HEALTH CORP. | 59.08 | -0.77 | -1.29% |
The major averages rebounded from a Thursday selloff that was their steepest since the Black Monday crash of 1987. All three lost at least 9.5 percent amid an avalanche of cancelations and postponement of large social gatherings and sporting events aimed at slowing the spread of the new coronavirus.
Friday’s gains come as the U.S. Congress, which was supposed to recess on Friday, works overtime to pass a stimulus package. Meanwhile, reports indicate Europe is set to announce measures on Monday that could amount to 1 percent of gross domestic product.
Some of the hardest-hit corners of the market were among the biggest gainers on Friday.
The cruise operators Carnival Cruise Corp., Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings and Royal Caribbean Cruises, which have collectively seen nearly $50 billion -- or over 70 percent of their value -- erased amid the selloff, all gained at least 20 percent early in the session before paring their gains.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CCL | CARNIVAL CORP. | 25.99 | +0.56 | +2.20% |
| NCLH | NORWEGIAN CRUISE LINE HOLDINGS LTD. | 28.31 | +1.42 | +5.26% |
| RCL | ROYAL CARIBBEAN GROUP | 246.41 | +2.35 | +0.96% |
American Airlines, Delta Air Lines and United Airlines, which have all lost more than half their value, were up at least 10 percent before pulling back.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AAL | AMERICAN AIRLINES GROUP INC. | 14.52 | -0.12 | -0.82% |
| DAL | DELTA AIR LINES INC. | 63.82 | +0.20 | +0.31% |
| UAL | UNITED AIRLINES HOLDINGS INC. | 96.83 | +0.48 | +0.50% |
The online travel-booking sites Expedia and Booking Holdings rose.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| EXPE | EXPEDIA GROUP INC. | 185.01 | +0.39 | +0.21% |
| BKNG | BOOKING HOLDINGS INC. | 5,224.28 | +22.30 | +0.43% |
Bank stocks soared as the yield on the 10-year Treasury note climbed to 0.920 percent and the yield curve steepened. Financial institutions make the majority of their money from the difference between interest paid to depositors -- who supply the money a bank lends -- and interest charged to borrowers.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| JPM | JPMORGAN CHASE & CO. | 246.25 | -3.47 | -1.39% |
| BAC | BANK OF AMERICA CORP. | 47.04 | -0.47 | -0.99% |
| C | CITIGROUP INC. | 71.40 | +0.50 | +0.71% |
| WFC | WELLS FARGO & CO. | 75.28 | -0.89 | -1.17% |
Big technology names, like Apple and Amazon were also in favor as Tesla shares dropped.
Meanwhile, the Walt Disney Company gained despite announcing the closure of both its Disney World and Disneyland theme parks.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AAPL | APPLE INC. | 239.59 | +2.26 | +0.95% |
| AMZN | AMAZON.COM INC. | 210.71 | +2.82 | +1.36% |
| TSLA | TESLA INC. | 357.09 | +11.93 | +3.46% |
| DIS | THE WALT DISNEY CO. | 117.17 | -0.49 | -0.42% |
On the earnings front, Gap reported better-than-expected top- and bottom-line results but warned it would take a $100 million revenue hit in the current quarter due to the COVID-19 outbreak.
Elsewhere, Slack Technologies, the workplace-messaging platform expected to benefit from more employees using technology to connect as they work from home during the outbreak, gave a disappointing first-quarter revenue forecast sending shares lower.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| gps | NO DATA AVAILABLE | - | - | - |
| work | NO DATA AVAILABLE | - | - | - |
European markets also surrendered earlier gains but ended the day higher. Britain’s FTSE rose 2.46 percent, France's CAC 1.8 percent. Germany’s DAX 0.77 percent. All had posted increases of more than 5 percent after opening.
Markets in Asia were under pressure at the close, with Japan’s Nikkei plunging 6.1 percent while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng and China’s Shanghai Composite shed 1.1 percent and 1.2 percent, respectively.