Dow Slumps as Fears Over Another Shutdown Gather Pace Amid Rising Infections

By Yasin Ebrahim

Investing.com - Wall Street slumped on Wednesday, paced by a decline in energy, as investors fretted over the prospect of another lockdown after some parts of the U.S. imposed restrictions to combat a resurgence in coronavirus infections.  

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 2.67%, or 699 points, the S&P 500 slipped 2.63%, while the Nasdaq Composite fell 2.30%.

With more than half of all US states reporting a rise in new coronavirus cases, with some breaking daily records, some parts of the U.S. are taking measures to contain the spread of the virus that threatens to undo some of the recent progress on reopening the economy.

New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut will require visitors from states with high rates of infections to self-isolate for 14 days, N.Y. Governor Andrew Cuomo said on Wednesday.

Other states have also suggested that restrictions could be reimposed to contain the outbreak.  

California Governor Gavin Newsom said he was prepared to reimpose stringent coronavirus restrictions to contain the surge in infections in the state, which reported more than 5,000 new cases on Tuesday, the highest number reported in a single day since the pandemic began.

Florida, meanwhile, confirmed that cases in the state jumped by 5,508 on Tuesday, a record, and now total 109,014.

Disney (NYSE:DIS) fell 5% after its theme park workers urged the company to delay the reopening following a record uptick in coronavirus cases in Florida.

Energy, led the decline in the broader market, paced by a slump in oil prices on fears the uptick in infections would force some states to reimpose some restrictions, hurting the usual a pick-up in demand seen during the summer months. The fall in oil prices was also exacerbated by a larger than unexpected build in U.S. weekly crude inventories, adding to concerns about the glut in supplies.

The reopening trade - bullish bets on stocks tied to the progress of the economic reopening – was shunned, with travel and tourism stocks down sharply.

American Airlines (NASDAQ:AAL) fell 5.8%, Marriott International (NASDAQ:MAR) slid 5.7%, Wynn Resorts (NASDAQ:WYNN) was down 9.3%, and Carnival (NYSE:CCL) slumped 11%,

Tech, which has weathered much of the virus-led wobbles in the market since the March lows, fell out favor, with FAANG stocks in the red.

Facebook (NASDAQ:FB) fell 3%, Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) slipped 1.5%, Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN) was down 1% while Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) slid 1.6% and Google-parent Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) fell 2%.

Dell Technologies (NYSE:DELL), meanwhile, sidestepped the selloff, rising 7.6%, following reports that it was exploring options to sell its $50 billion stake in VMware (NYSE:VMW).

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