S&P 500, Dow hit all-time highs on vaccine optimism
Reuters
Published Nov 09, 2020 04:08AM ET
Updated Nov 09, 2020 10:51AM ET
By Medha Singh and Shivani Kumaresan
(Reuters) - The S&P 500 and the Dow hit record highs on Monday as the first successful late-stage clinical trial of a COVID-19 vaccine sparked hopes of the economy emerging from a pandemic-driven crisis.
The blue-chip Dow surged as much as 5.7%, also getting a boost from Joe Biden clinching a tightly-fought presidential election.
The companies hit hardest by months of travel bans and lockdowns soared, with Boeing (NYSE:BA) Co up 12.6% and airlines and cruise line operators all trading 20% to 30% higher.
Oil prices surged more than 10% and U.S. Treasuries sold off after Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) and BioNTech said the data showed the vaccine was more than 90% effective in preventing COVID-19. [O/R]
"This is extremely important and should give the market confidence that Pfizer's candidate offers a breakthrough in terms of reaching herd immunity at some point next year," said Robin Winkler, strategist at Deutsche Bank (DE:DBKGn) Research.
Pfizer and BioNTech, the first drugmakers to show successful data from a large-scale clinical trial, said they had found no serious safety concerns so far and expect to seek U.S. emergency use authorization later this month.
By 10:21 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 1,273.09 points, or 4.49%, and the S&P 500 was up 120.44 points, or 3.43%, while the Russell 2000 small-cap index surged 5.7% to an all-time high.
The S&P energy index was on course for its best day since April.
U.S. banks including Citigroup Inc (NYSE:C) and Bank of America Corp (NYSE:BAC), often seen as a proxy for the broader economy, jumped about 9% each, while oil majors Exxon Mobil Corp (NYSE:XOM) and Chevron Corp (NYSE:CVX) climbed about 10%.
By contrast, shares in technology and other companies seen as "stay-at-home" winners were lower or gaining less.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite was up 211.01 points, or 1.77%, as Netflix Inc (NASDAQ:NFLX), Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ:AMZN) and gaming company Activision Blizzard Inc (NASDAQ:ATVI) fell between 1.5% and 4.7%.
World stocks hit a record high earlier in the day and the dollar remained weak as expectations of better global trade ties and more monetary stimulus under President-elect Biden lifted demand for risky assets. [MKTS/GLOB]
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Treasury yields had fallen last week on expectations that Biden would win the White House but the Senate would be controlled by Republicans, potentially stifling a fiscal stimulus package and putting the onus back on the Federal Reserve.
Among other movers, McDonald's Corp (NYSE:MCD) gained about 1.0% after it beat third-quarter revenue and profit estimates, as U.S. customers ordered more hamburgers and fries in drive-through outlets and on delivery apps.
Advancing issues outnumbered decliners 5.95-to-1 on the NYSE and 3.78-to-1 on the Nasdaq.
The S&P index recorded 138 new 52-week highs and one new low, while the Nasdaq recorded 219 new highs and 11 new lows.
Written By: Reuters
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