US stocks retreat as coronavirus toll rises
The U.S. death toll climbed to 11, including the first fatality outside Washington state
U.S. equity futures are giving back gains from the second biggest one-day stock rise.
The major futures indexes are indicating a decline of 1.7 percent or more than 400 Dow points.
Federal authorities announced an investigation of the Seattle-area nursing home at the center of an outbreak of the new coronavirus as the U.S. death toll climbed to 11, including the first fatality outside Washington state.
Officials in California's Placer County, near Sacramento, said Wednesday an elderly person who tested positive after returning from a San Francisco-to-Mexico cruise had died. Texas and New Jersey also reported their first cases.
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The gains from Wednesday's trading session more than recouped big losses from a day earlier as wild, virus-fueled swings around the world's markets extend into a third week. Health care stocks led gains after former Vice President Joe Biden solidified his contender status for the Democratic presidential nomination. Investors see him as more business-friendly than Senator Bernie Sanders.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I:DJI | DOW JONES AVERAGES | 44296.51 | +426.16 | +0.97% |
| SP500 | S&P 500 | 5969.34 | +20.63 | +0.35% |
| I:COMP | NASDAQ COMPOSITE INDEX | 19003.651134 | +31.23 | +0.16% |
The rally's momentum accelerated around midday after House and Senate leadership reached a deal on a bipartisan $8.3 billion bill to battle the coronavirus outbreak. The measure's funds would go toward research into a vaccine, improved tests and drugs to treat infected people.
In European markets, Britain's FTSE fell 1.4 percent, Germany's DAX slipped 1.2 percent and France's CAC was off 1.4 percent.
In Asian markets, Japan's benchmark Nikkei rose 1.1 percent, Hong Kong's Hang Seng added 2.1 percent and the Shanghai Composite jumped 2 percent.
US VIRUS DEATH TOLL HITS 11; FEDS INVESTIGATE NURSING HOME
Investors expect other central banks will follow up on the Federal Reserve’s surprise move Tuesday of slashing interest rates by half a percentage point in hopes of protecting the economy from the economic fallout of the new coronavirus.
Even though many investors say they know lower interest rates will not halt the spread of the virus, they want to see central banks and other authorities do what they can to lessen the damage.
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The Bank of England has a meeting on March 26 on interest rates. The European Central Bank and others have already cut rates below zero, meanwhile, which limits their monetary policy firepower. But economists say they could make other moves, such as freeing up banks to lend more.
The Associated Press contributed to this article.